


Source Music

by agoodnight



Category: Pitch Perfect (2012)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-10-12
Updated: 2013-01-15
Packaged: 2017-11-16 03:21:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 27,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/534922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/agoodnight/pseuds/agoodnight
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She likes watching him more than she likes watching whatever critically acclaimed piece of celluloid he shoves into his overused laptop. Beca x Jesse, a collection of one-shots and drabbles.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Harmonics

**Author's Note:**

> I'd ship anyone in that movie with anyone, but I did think that Beca and Jesse were cute together. Also he's pretty damn adorable full stop. These one-shots/drabbles are just for fun. The chapter titles refer to elements of Film scoring and music in general. 
> 
> Please excuse any grammatical errors, I will go back and fix them!
> 
> Disclaimer: I do no own any of these characters or the film they come from. This is all written for the sake of fanfic.

 

She likes surprising him. It’s the easiest thing in the world to do. When she slips her hand into his after the finals and drags him into one of the empty hallways, he follows her with a clever quip heavy on his lips.  She swallows it when she presses her lips to his, 20 minutes waiting for the last two acts to perform meant that she could do little but watch the back of that auburn head. She’s giddy, not just from the adrenaline of the performance, or how fucking amazing they were, but also by the fact that he was receptive to her message. More than a little receptive if the painfully wide grin was indication enough.

He sighs against her mouth, leaning forward so that his hips cradle hers against the wall, and tangles a hand through the ends of her hair. When he draws back, a content tug to his lips, she doesn’t hesitate to turn him, pushing him flat against the painted brick.

“Damn,” he fumbles, wide eyed as he stares at her. “Prison really d-“ she cuts that one off too with a hard press of her lips to his, drawing that thick bottom lip into her mouth. Her small hands are on his stomach, cloying at the fabric of his t-shirt, he himself a bit too stupefied to place his hands anywhere other than on her hips.  Her mouth finds the line of his jaw, and then the soft flesh where his neck rises to meet it. When she sucks and his hips give an involuntary jerk into her own, it’s her own laugh that covers up his embarrassed mumble.

“Now you’re just being mean,” he complains, but he brings an arm around her waist to press her closer, and she can feel the smile against the crown of her head when he presses his lips there.

“Does your ego need a bandaid?” she smirks, head resting on his chest as they dissolve into some sort of wall embrace.  Whatever.

“Well we might need to invest in a first aid kit or two if this here is going to become a thing Million Dollar Baby--Ow” she snorts when he scrapes his knuckles on the brick while trying to rap them against it.

“That’s Hilary Swank to you, nerd.”

“Aca-scuse me?” he barely gets out with a straight face, and she elbows him in the side for even trying.  


	2. Synchronization

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You’re a dork,” she replies and when he goes in for a punishing nip to her lips she palms his face and pushes him back onto the bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do no own any of these characters or the film they come from. This is all written for the sake of fanfic.

He’s on top of her before she gets the door all the way open, his fingertips carding through her hair as he brings her mouth up to meet his. “Do you know how beautiful you are?” he asks between kisses, guiding her back towards her bed, licking a line along her bottom lip.  A cross between a chuckle and a sigh is muffled against the pressure of his mouth. “I almost grabbed you during—“

“Ehem.”

Beca squeaks as Jesse stumbles forward, nearly pushing her into her desk.

“Kimmy Jin, hey” he coughs, flexing his fingers awkwardly.

“I thought we talked about this _Beca_ ,” the glare lingers on Beca, who is pressing her lips together to hold back a smile.

When the door slams shut with Kimmy Jin’s retreat, Beca doesn’t even bother to hold it in, laughing at the embarrassed flush on Jesse’s face when he turns to her accusingly.

“Ya well, I think she likes me,” he declares, and Beca snorts when she drops heavily into her computer chair.

“That’s not what that looks like,” she’s leaning back, smirking. “I think you’ve confused liking for disdain. Which, _would_  explain why you’re always here,” she gestures around her room, arms crossing over her chest, “bothering me.”

“Oh I’m bothering you am I?” he scoffs, eyebrows high as he takes in her indifferent expression, her fingers already going for her laptop as if she has something better to do.  “You didn’t seem so bothered last night. Or this morning when I brought you breakfast Beca. _Breakfast_.” he tries, but is rewarded with nothing more than a shoulder shrug.

When she goes for her headphones, Jesse laughs an “oh come on,” and snatches her wrist, pulling her towards him until she tumbles onto the bed.  Her legs bracket his hips, and she gives him a smack when his fingertips run up her sides.

“You like me, don’t lie now,” he locks eyes with her, chuckling when she bites her lip and looks as if she’s putting real thought to that statement. “You like me,” he punctuates with a kiss to her jaw, and another on her nose because god help him she’s cute. Not that he was ever allowed to say that to her.

“You’re a dork,” she replies and when he goes in for a punishing nip to her lips she palms his face and pushes him back onto the bed.

He lays there, wondering how this is his life when she leans down over him, far enough that her hair is dangling in front of his face.

“Were you really going to jump me during my solo?” her smile is softer now, but there is sharpness to her eyes that lets him know that above all things she will always be mocking him in some way.

He makes a show of blowing a lock of her hair from his face. “Oh by the second bridge, for sure,” he admits plainly, because it’s true. Whatever their little teasing flirtations were before they had gotten together were nothing compared to the looks of pure heat she gives him during a particularly sexy set now. Hell, it didn’t even have to be a remotely sexy song.  His burgundy zip-up hoodie, his _uniform,_ suffered a pretty serious beer spill at last weeks mixer after he had unfortunately made eye contact with Beca just as she and Cynthia Rose did a simultaneous pelvic roll.  Beca had watched him watching her the whole time.

“You were pretty close to a scandal,” he sighs, matter of fact.

“Wait, was I was almost publicly treble-boned?” she exclaims in mock horror, squeezing his sides with her thighs.

“It’s your eyes,” he shrugs as best he can when nearly drowning in a duvet cover. There is a silence as they simply look at each other for a second, and she sees the intent in his eyes before he even opens that beautiful mouth.

“ _Your eyes,_ ”

“Oh, no.”

“ _The light, the heat,_ ” “Jesse stop-“ “ _in your eyes,_ ” he sings louder over her protests, eyes expressive despite the curtain of hair nearly covering his face.

She does her best to inhale an exasperated sigh and settles down into his hips, ignoring him.

“ _I am complete, in your eyes,_ ” his own had slid shut and he was now using her abdomen as a drum as he did his best to beatbox the bassline of the song. 

“ _Oh, I want to be that compl—_ “ the crescendo is muffled by Beca’s hand as she leans back down, shaking her head.

“Shutup Lloyd,” she covers his satisfied grin with her own lips and pushes him further down into the mess of blankets on her bed.  

Yes, she likes him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am working on both of their voices, hang in there. 
> 
> Film reference:  
> -Say Anything (1989) dir. Cameron Crowe.
> 
> Song Reference:  
> -"In Your Eyes" (1986) Peter Gabriel


	3. Decay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He definitely isn't worrying about how Beca got back to school. Nope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think that a problem with Jesse and a possible 'Nice guy' syndrome may exist in the film, and while I like them together I did have a bit of trouble with Jesse's reaction to her blowup on him. However, I think that people should also keep in mind that Jesse is probably the closest friend that Beca had at that University outside of the Bellas, and her treatment of him, whether he had feelings for her or not, was not okay. I think that it was pretty clear that romantic feelings or not, Jesse cared very strongly about her as a friend. HOWEVER, whatever she was feeling or wasn't feeling, she was completely within her right to not acknowledge Jesse's feeling. Just because Jesse genuinely cared about her, does not mean that she owed him a damn thing.
> 
> If Jesse's reaction to her blow-up had more to do with her not acknowledging his feelings rather than being genuinely upset with the way that Beca treats anyone who cares about her, then I think that the film has a serious problem in that regard. However, I think it's more of the latter, complicated by broken hearted frustrations. I'd be interested in hearing what you think. As always, excuse the grammar until I get a beta.

There he is, a defense of her Bella monogamy half way off his lips when she essentially lays waste to his little world. He's half way in love with her (scary ear spike included), and he's pretty sure she knows a little bit about that, she just doesn't want to acknowledge it. He’s persistent, he knows, but this girl has him tripping over himself and he’s charmed by the teasing and the half smiles she tries to hide from him when she ducks her head behind the record stacks. He likes being her friend.  He likes her a whole hell of a lot, but he's starting to see a theme here in the way she pushes people away. He might be singing this little tune with his heart in his hands, and if he’s singing alone then okay, he can accept that. But above all things he’s her friend and he doesn’t deserve to be treated like this.

She’s done and so is he.

Jesse tries to swallow down the hollow feeling but finds it difficult with how damn dry his throat suddenly feels. Did they have water? They totally have water bottles somewhere. Where the hell was the water?

He excuses himself when he accidentally bumps into Chloe, but doesn’t even bother to turn his head to face the rest of his team. He can already feel Donald’s gaze on the back of his head.

Bumper comes up behind Jesse on the way to their marks and grips his shoulder hard. “That _skank,_ ” Bumper makes sure to put emphasis on the k, “wouldn’t be affecting your vocal chords now would she?” Bumper’s voice is sickeningly sweet and painfully condescending and it makes Jesse want to lay the jackass out flat on the stage.

But Jesse isn’t violent, and Jesse isn’t supposed to care.

“Watch it,”Jesse stops flat, head snapping over to stare angrily over his shoulder. They have a brief stare off, before Jesse turns back around and fixates on the announcer. “I’ll hit the notes,” comes out despondent, and he shakes off Bumper’s grip.

“Then let’s hit it!” Bumper’s voice climbs to falsetto, and he shoulders past Jesse to take his place on stage, the other Trebles bounding out to the spotlight behind him.

They win, but nothing has ever felt more like a loss.

“Jesse,” Benji is in the wings when they come off the stage, and he’ smiling. “You were awesome tonight my man,” he stumbles a bit, unsure if that was the cool thing to say. “Definitely your best footwork yet.”

“Thanks Benji,” Jesse smiles half heartedly, but finds that he’s still having trouble looking at anything or anyone. He’s tired.  

Benji clears his throat and rubs the back of his neck.

“Hey about, about Beca—“

“Ya, I’m going to get some water. Want one?” Jesse interrupts with an even tighter smile than the one before, and takes off up the stairs to the dressing room before Benji can even give him an answer.  

Later, when he’s on the bus, Jesse can’t help but wonder how Beca even got back to the University. The Bellas had taken up the left side of the bus, but Beca wasn't among them.  Aubrey had nearly pitched a fit about getting on the bus with them, but one lethal look from Chloe had shut her up.  The Bellas hadn’t said a word since they’d taken their seats, not even to one another.

Did she call her Dad? He opens his mouth to ask Amy but thinks better of it. 

( _Was she even speaking to her Dad? Not hard to believe, she pushes anyone away who could possibly--)_

Chloe keeps shooting him looks, but whether they’re sympathetic or accusatory, Jesse doesn’t know. He keeps his eyes out the window and his thoughts busy with other things.

He definitely isn’t worrying about how Beca got back to school.

Nope.  

 

(He sees the back of her head ducking into the radio station the next day and his shoulders may or may not slump in relief. Fists clenched in his coat pockets, he turns away anyways and walks in the opposite direction.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do no own any of these characters or the film they come from. This is all written for the sake of fanfic.


	4. Theme

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She likes watching him more than she likes watching whatever critically acclaimed piece of celluloid he shoves into his overworked laptop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unbearably fluffy. I also tried my hand at an Amy voice, but will definitely have to work on it ;)
> 
> Disclaimer: I do no own any of these characters or the film they come from. This is all written for the sake of fanfic.

She likes watching him more than she likes watching whatever critically acclaimed piece of celluloid he shoves into his overworked laptop. He has a tendency to mouth the words to the song or the script, whichever he’s feeling more at the moment, and he does it so often that she feels like he deserves more of her attention in this “movication.”

They’re watching Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back, and Beca had found a very comfortable spot on Jesse’s shoulder half way through the film.  He’s been quoting the Han Solo lines for the past half hour, and she can tell because her head has been moving along with his jaw as he’s tried to be as subtle as possible.

He’s so very not subtle. Ever.

Beca is about to comment on it when the scene changes, and her attention is caught on Leia in her white jump suit, and a dashing Han Solo about to turn into a block of cement. Cute.

She knows this scene. She’d probably know it based on pop culture alone, but in this case she totally cheated.  Jesse had made it very clear that he didn’t want her to watch any of the movies without him, citing it very important for her movication. Except, she and Amy had decided a week ago that they were going to turn their girls night into a Harrison Ford night. They even physically rented the damn movies. Who does that anymore?

_“I did Footloose in my high school in Tasmania,” Amy comments as she grabs the movie case off of the shelf. “Ya, it closed early when Freddy drove the tractor off the stage.”_

_Beca snorts distractedly, two different movie cases in her hand and a contemplative look on her face. Movies weren’t exactly her thing._

_“ Working Girl looks like it might be about a secretary fetish,” she muses, over exaggerating a lip bite as she turns back to Fat Amy. “But Indiana Jones just looks like Han Solo in a hat...and a whip,” there’s a pause as Beca considers what she just said. “Are Harrison Ford movies actually pornos? I’m sensing a lot of kink.”_

_“Well ya,” Amy is gleefully incredulous, “have you seen his shoulders?” When Beca shrugs, Amy stares at her like the skin was melting off of her face._

_“Okay, this has just reached a serious level of horseshit. Give me those,” Amy exchanges the Footloose DVD and a bag of licorice for the two Harrison Ford movies. _

_“This one’s got romance, that chick from Alien, and shoulder pads,” Amy places Working Girl over her right breast. “And this one,” she takes Raiders of the Lost Ark and places it over her other breast, “has snakes, tight pants, and no shirts. Choose your adventure.”_

_Beca laughs as Amy starts the Jeopardy countdown, now swaying with both movies still over her chest, and more than a few scandalized customers shooting them horrified looks._

_“Annnd this has gotten weird. I’ll take no shirts for $3.99 Alex.”_

She remembers paying a lot of attention to this scene, mostly because Amy had asked a lot of thought provoking questions during it  ( _“Do you think that Chewie conditions his fur?”)_.  She burrows further into the space where Jesse’s shoulder meets his chest and waits for the line to come.

Han goes in for a hug with an enraged Chewie, and Beca can hear the vibrations of Jesse’s voice through his chest.

“Save your strength for another time Chewie,” Jesse whispers verbatim, “when the odds are better.”[1]

Beca snorts into the fabric of his shirt, and she can feel Jesse’s smile against the top of her head when he chuckles at her reaction.  He doesn’t care, and this very nerdy tick of his only makes her belly clench with all those annoyingly overwhelming girly feelings. Asshole. 

He’s started to draw shapes on her back, and she could very well fall asleep against this mass of boy and flannel shirt. That, however, would be very bad since her track record so far was at a very dismal 21 pass outs before the half way mark out of 30. Jesse is not above pinching her.

Beca watches as Leia and Han make eye contact and then fall against each other in a last kiss. She feels her mouth dry a little and knows that she’s going to say it.

“I love you,”[1] Beca’s voice is only just slightly louder than Carrie Fischer’s but it causes Jesse to go rigid underneath her, and she knows he’s heard.

She forces herself to remain calm and relaxed against him, fighting her own flight response even as the words leave her mouth. They both knew how difficult, how unexpected it was for her to say. She had spent over a year coming to this conclusion, and a few months longer fighting herself on the matter.

There’s a beat as Han looks at Leia and there’s a sick feeling licking at Beca’s insides.

“I know,”[1] comes out gruffly from Jesse’s lips just as it comes out of Harrison Ford’s.  The grip Jesse has on Beca suddenly becomes unbearably tight, and he barely shoves his laptop off his lap before he’s shifted down and closer to her eye line, his own eyes unbearably wide and furtively searching.

Beca kisses him soundly on the lips and lets the thunderous beat of her pulse in her ears drown out the sounds of Han Solo becoming a carbonite wall fixture.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This might seem a little out of character for Beca, especially since she's someone who has relationship issues, particularly with those who she can see care for her. In my mind this whole 'I love you' stuff has come from over a year of acknowledging that feeling, and then fighting with herself over whether or not to say it. It's hard for her, and I don't imagine that Jesse would have said anything because he wouldn't want to spook her. Although he also very well could have said it first and then patiently waited. Whatever, it's all in the name of fluff.
> 
> I really am trying to work on Beca, I don't want her to seem too out of character but the times when she's with Jesse are obviously times when her guard is down further than normal. K I'll stop talking. 
> 
> Film reference
> 
> -[1] Star Wars : Episode V- The Empire Strikes Back, (1980), dir. Irvin Kerschner  
> -[2] Ibid.,  
> -[3] Ibid.,  
> -Working Girl, (1988), dir. Mike Nichols  
> -Raider's of the Lost Ark, (1981), dir. Steven Spielberg  
> -Footloose, (1984), dir. Herbert Ross


	5. Diegetic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Luke’s been burned before,” she cocks an eyebrow and raps her knuckles against the tabletop. Well, that was invitation enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all of your comments, I really appreciate them! This is more fluff, it didn't really turn out how I wanted it, but I totally imagine them having a lot of radio station sex when Luke is gone. I also think that Beca would enjoy being the more aggressively confident one when it comes to said sex. As always, please excuse any mistakes, I will go back and fix them!
> 
> Disclaimer: I do no own any of these characters or the film they come from. This is all written for the sake of fanfic.

The bass is really pumping when Jesse slides in through the door of the radio station, a bag of takeout in one hand and the sodas balancing precariously in the other. It actually takes him by surprise for a second, and he nearly trips over the crate of unshelved records that he’d carelessly left near the door on his way out.  
  
“Nice effort,” he says to the crate when he regains his balance, “thought you could trip me--shit. Shiiiit-” Jesse nearly drops the bag of fast food in an effort to catch the tipping cup of soda. “Well played, you almost had my refreshments,” he dips his head in a respectful nod as he passes the crate, “I underestimated you.”  
  
He can see Beca’s head of dark hair through the glass partition of the booth and nearly goes for a wave before his very full hands lead him to rethink that step.  
  
“Bec-” he tries, but the music is still loudly competing with his own voice, and his girlfriend is turned away. He recognizes the song as track 3 from her 5th mix, its bassline mainly taken from Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own.”  Dragonette’s voice takes over when Robyn’s fades out.  Mix 5 means she’s in a good mood.  
  
“Beca!” he tries again once the food is settled on the sorting table and his hands are free to wave around like a complete moron. She catches the movement on his second arm flap after a “Becaw!” and rolls her eyes at him through the glass.  
  
He grins.  
  
He waits until he sees her get up from her chair before turning around and unpacking the amazing Mexican food he’d actually driven to get.  
  
“Okay so the enchilada is yours,” he says once he hears the door open, his attention still on the food in the paper bag. “Not my personal choice, since the burrito is practically bursting from meaty goodness, but if you’re willing to lower your death glare down a level, I might be willing to share...” the word trails off as he finally looks up to see Beca watching him with a smirk on her face.  
  
“What?” he narrows his eyes slightly, looking over his shoulder self consciously. “It’s the crate right? You saw that didn’t you,” he throws his hands up like he doesn’t have a prayer and reaches back into the bag to retrieve her enchilada. “Be cool Jesse, be cool,” he lets out a long exhale through his nose, but she can see his mouth twitching upwards at the sides.  
  
Beca’s smirk turns into an amused smile, but she keeps her eyes on him, even as she turns up the sound outside of the booth.  
  
There’s a beat as Jesse takes in this change. And then, “are you going to murder me? Is that what this is?”  
  
Beca slides closer until her hip is leaning against the table and merely shrugs. “If that enchilada is as good as you say it is, then you can keep your life,” she’s back to smirking now.  
  
Jesse scoffs, and sets her food down closer to her, eyebrows furrowing when she merely moves it over to the other desk, leaving her space free. “Homicide at the radio station would be a cliche,” he explains, and tries to slide her soda over to her as well, but once again Beca moves it aside.  
  
“Okay,” Jesse turns to face her fully, his burrito in hand, “what’s your deal. Is this some sort of...girl code I’m supposed to be deciphering?” He feels only marginally less alarmed when she starts to laugh at him.  
  
“I’m disappointed that you don’t know the guacamole secret handshake,” she winks and pushes herself up onto the table so that she’s sitting, her right thigh nearly brushing his hand.  
  
He’s still staring suspiciously at her when she reaches back for her soda, primly (that should have been his first sign) taking a sip through the straw.  “We can eat after we have sex.”  
  
He full on drops his burrito onto the desk.  
  
“What was that?” he splutters.  
  
“This song really builds,” Beca’s smile is razor sharp and all so beguiling, Chloe’s words a faint echo in her mind. “It would be a shame to waste it.”  
  
Jesse only then notices that the track had changed somewhere between him accusing her of murder, and her comment that they were going to have sex. Right now. _Right now?_  
  
“Right now?” Jesse’s eyebrows have flown up as he has tried to follow, and he stumbles into the neat bracket of her thighs when she tugs him forward. “Right here?” he didn’t lock the door. Damnit why didn’t he lock the door? Yes, why didn’t he expect to have amazing sex with his unpredictable girlfriend at every possible minute?  
  
Beca gingerly takes the paper bag from his hands and sets it off to the side with the rest of her food, the soda and burrito following with it. “Luke’s been burned before,” she cocks an eyebrow and raps her knuckles against the tabletop. Well, that was invitation enough.

He has to choke back a laugh at the memory of their first 'official' meeting, Luke's resigned tone when he warned them off of the desk.  

“Serves him right,” he says finally. Jesse lets her swallow his grin when she surges forward to take his lips, his hands skirting the top of her jeans so that he can pull her flush against him.   
  
The kiss becomes more frantic, and Beca can feel that heat in her ears when his fingers brush her breast, the sensitivity of his touch only dampened by her damn clothes.  
  
“Up,” she breathes against his mouth, bottom lip skirting the dip of his jaw when he nods furtively, his hands sliding back out from under her shirt and onto the lip on the table. She shimmies out of her plaid shirt, sliding back to give him more room to climb up. She isn’t even sure where her shirt goes when she tosses it.  
  
Jesse has one knee up already when he tries to bring the other up as well, but is met with the most intense pain as his kneecap cracks against the metal edge. “ _Shit_ ,” he cries, and collapses half on top of Beca.  
  
“Jesse,” she tries to get out, her fingers tangling in his sweater as she tries to help pull him up. She can’t help but laugh, she really can’t, not when he looks so pathetic lying there, half resigned to the fact that that just happened. “Are-are you okay?” she isn’t even trying to hide the laughter in her voice, but her fingers brush through his hair in consolation.  
  
“Evil,” he responds in a dark voice, and manages to pull himself up all the way. “That was karma,” he grimaces when he brings the offending knee up and alongside her thigh “Luke totally knows.” She’s still laughing.  
  
Beca is laid out underneath him, hand covering her mouth in an attempt to stop whatever giggles that she can, and Jesse can’t help but chuckle too. He punishes her with a nip to her shoulder and settles his weight down against her pelvis, enough that it softens her humour into a long exhale.  
  
“Enjoyed that did you?” his face is close enough that his nose brushes hers, and he feels her legs slide up so that he falls more heavily into the cradle of her hips.  
  
“I like it when I can get my comedy for f-free,” she starts matter of factly, but the last word is caught up in a sigh when his lips press against the swell of her cleavage. She’s smirking when her hips snap up into a pelvic roll, and it’s his turn to choke on a groan of his own.  
  
“I think that your burrito is getting cold,” she’s goading him on, but there’s an affectionate curve to her smile when she says, “let’s go junior.”  
  
His eyes crinkle when he smiles back down at her and it almost hurts. Hand high on her hip, he muffles her next laugh with a warm press of his lips to hers.  
  
Their food does go cold.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Music reference
> 
> Robyn, "Dancing On My Own" (2010)


	6. Click Track

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Yeah, I’m going to need you to never use those words again,” she winces. Jesse just smiles back at her, and she wonders if he has a problem.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so these take place during the movie and after. They also all take place on the grass while Beca is trying to listen to music. Maybe I was imagining it, but judging by how friendly and concerned Benji was when Beca stormed off during the semis (regionals? w/e) and how pleased Beca was when Benji got his chance to sing, I think that Beca totally hung out with Jesse and Benji in a lot of what you don’t see in the movie. Jesse is definitely, aside from the ladies in the Bellas, Beca’s closest friend at school and I’m going to throw Benji in for occasional hangouts. So yes, this is my head cannon, deal with it. 
> 
> I really appreciate all your amazing comments, and will reply to them soon. I have been getting a few asking why there aren’t more Bellas in these little ficlets, and I do have plans for more girl centric ones. 
> 
> And as always I will go back and fix any grammatical errors! 
> 
> Disclaimer: I have no claim on the characters or the movie they come from, this is all just for fanfic and interpretation.

She’s got that heavy feeling when you’re completely at ease and the constancy of your own breath is practically rocking you to sleep. She takes in a large inhale of sunshine and September breeze when she adjusts her position on her backpack, hands poised comfortability on her stomach. She’s at a lean, totally boneless against the bag propping up her shoulders and head.

_Best english class I’ve ever skipped_ , Beca thinks with a satisfied smile, and turns up the track so that her pulse is pounding in time with the rapid drum kicks.  
  
At least this way she’s actually using her time wisely. What the hell was she going to get out of a literature class? Last she checked, Charles Dickens didn’t feature any female music producers in any of his books. Or was she supposed to be impressed that the Jane Austen chicks could all entertain with a little jingle on the pianoforte?  
  
Beca felt that familiar flush of indignation at the thought of her Father even forcing her to stay at this damn school, the promise of L.A. almost dangling from his lips. He probably meant well, but a liberal arts degree was also probably meant to suck the money out of your shallow pocket and leave you with a smile.  That shitty piece of paper might as well turn to ash.  
  
Whatever. She’d put up with it, give him what he wanted, and then she’d be long gone.  
  
And well, those Bella girls seemed pretty cool anyways...though potentially psychotic.  
  
 _Doesn’t seem to be a short supply of that_ , Beca lips purse as she opens her eyes to take a look around at the other students littering the field.  She closes them again to block it all out.  
  
“Beca?”  
  
It was faint, underneath her headphones, but it was there. Beca’s eyes slid open and her brow furrowed.  
  
“Hey! Beca--”  
  
Oh god, who the hell was talking to her? There had to be another Rebecca. There had to be.  Just in case there wasn’t, she didn’t move an inch lest she give away any sort of sign that she was inviting any sort of conversation.  
  
“Headphones huh, Jesus how loud are you listening to--are your eardrums blown, is that why you’re doing a really good impression of ignoring me?” Jesse’s voice is faint but amused enough to match that insufferable grin on his face when he finally comes into her line of vision.  
  
Aw, shit.  
  
She thinks about turning her music up louder and pretending she didn’t see, but he’s standing directly over her now, casting a large obnoxious shadow. .  
  
“You caught me,” she replies without any enthusiasm, but reaches up to take her headphones off nonetheless. “Can I help you?”  
  
Jesse laughs like she’s said something really amusing, and stuffs his hands into his jean pockets. “Saw you out here, just wanted to say hi. You know,” he rocks back on his heels, and stays in that casual  lean that boys seem to pull off so well, “since we’re radio buddies now.”  
  
“Yeah, I’m going to need you to never use those words again,” she winces.  
  
Jesse just smiles back at her, and she wonders if he has a problem.  
  
“You know,” Beca sits up fully and begins to wind her headphones, reaching for her backpack so she can make a quick getaway. “I just remembered that I’m skipping an english class,” she gives a sarcastic bark of laughter as if she can’t believe she could be ditzy enough to forget that.  “So thanks for coming over to say hi, but I’d better go and make the most of my free education.”  
  
Jesse’s eyebrow puckers for a minute, almost in disappointment, or maybe confusion because let’s face it, Beca is a pretty bad liar. And conversationalist.  
  
“Sure,” it comes out long and drawn out, and she can tell by the twitch in his lips that he knows she’s full of shit.  
  
She ignores him when he picks up her bag for her, and snatches her denim jacket out of his grasp when he tries to be helpful with that too. She is not interested in his charm and overly eager and abundantly apparent sense of humour, why does he not get that?  
  
“So tomorrow at the station then, radio buddy,” his voice calls out to her as she walks away. “I’m not embarrassing you am I?” he shouts even louder, and she rolls her eyes.  He probably knew that she would because she can hear him chuckling even though she gets further away.

   
  
xxx

  
  
He’s walking across the grass with Benji the next time she sees him by her _place_ , and Beca doesn’t really have time to pretend that she doesn’t see him (nor the inclination because yes, he makes the whole CD stacking thing a lot more fun. She can admit it).  
  
His roommate, who Beca has only met once before when he came to bring Jesse some lunch, seems to be doing most of the talking if his animated gestures are indication enough.  
  
(“I also brought you a hotdog too, if you want it,” Benji bashfully sets a second bag of food onto the table in front of her, and Beca is so taken aback that she merely blinks back at him. “Jesse said that you worked together” he stumbles to reassure her,” and I know it’s all ‘stranger danger!’ but I swear I didn’t poison it.” Beca laughs at his earnestness, and mirrors his friendly smile when she thanks him. Jesse hides his own grin behind his burger. )  
  
When Jesse sees her, he spares a smile and a wave, but aside from a lingering look as the two boys pass by, he doesn’t hesitate in his stride. Becca waves back, but as soon as her eyes slide shut again and they’re out of her view, her focus is on her music and her music alone.

  
  
xxx

  
  
“So I heard about the mixer.”  
  
She sighs and abandons her headphones. “It really wasn’t that bad.”  
  
There’s a pause, and Beca lets herself believe the silence will continue.  
  
“You know I can help you with your choreography. It’s like a flight attendant thing right?”  
  
“Shut up,” she groans over his friendly laughter, and finds herself smiling along with him.

  
  
xxx

  
  
  
She knows he’s there before she even opens her eyes, which is why she takes her time in doing so, Sia’s voice is companionship enough right now.  
  
To her credit she merely blinks her surprise when she turns her head to find both Jesse and Benji laying alongside her, sunglasses perched on their faces and chins tilted towards the sky. Jesse has one arm under his head and he seems to almost be drifting off beside her. Both of their eyes are closed.  
  
Pale as she is, it was a beautiful day for sunbathing, the last of September’s warmth had bled into October and many other students were similarly lazing about on the grass. Beca wonders when Jesse and Benji had even settled down beside her, and how they did it without her noticing. Neither were subtle in any way. Was her music really that damn loud?  
  
Musings aside, Beca finds her gaze following the slope of Jesse’s nose to the hard line of jaw, stopping for a moment when she reaches that shadowed area where the throat rises to meet it.  He swallows at that moment, and Beca’s gaze skips away lest she actually watch his adam’s apple bob, and falls onto the hand resting on his abdomen.  
  
She stares then, moreso at the musculature of his hands than the fact that he had nicely tanned forearms, or even at the fact she can see his bicep bunching up under his t-shirt when he flexes the arm cradling his head. While she’s watching those hands, Jesse shifts, and his fingers graze the newly exposed flesh just at the lip of his jeans.  
  
Beca’s head snaps back up so that she’s looking at nothing but blue sky, though she can still hear Jesse shifting in his place.  
  
Beca lets out a long and calming exhale, her fingers rising to resettle the headphones against her ears.  
  
 _If I took you home it’d be a home run_ , Sia croons and Beca quickly changes the song.  


 

xxx

 

  
  
“Are you getting ready for the riff-off?” his eyes betray his excitement.  
  
Beca; however, feels very tired suddenly. “What the hell is a riff-off?” [1]  
  
Jesse’s face splits into a smirk, though it occurs to Beca that if anyone can make something that’s supposed to be smug look far more friendly and endearing, it’s Jesse.  
  
“It’s an aca-face off,” he dodges her shove, knowing that she hates the use of ‘aca’ anything, and brings his hands up defensively. “We all get together, sing covers based on categories, and then I wipe the floor with you--ah, hey” he snorts when she lands a well aimed slap to his shoulder.  
  
“This whole...” she struggles for words and screws up her face, “a capella thing is getting out of hand. A riff-off?” she reaches for her juice pack and takes a nice long drink while Jesse watches her. “Sounds like some nerd dance battle to me.”  
  
“You haven’t seen my electric slide,” Jesse says with a straight face, and Beca chokes a little on her juice when she laughs at the mental image.  
  
“Are you going to bring disco back for me?” she asks with a mocking flash of teeth and he overdoes an affronted look.  
  
“For you?” he seems to consider and reaches for the box of cookies he brought. “I’d bring back the hustle, _do the hustle!_ \--woah” he winces when she really slugs him that time. “Or later, maybe do the hustle later,” he rubs at his shoulder, really milking it with his pitiful expression, but she just rolls her eyes.  
  
They’re quiet for a moment, Jesse takes a bite of his cookie and looks thoughtfully at his abandoned movie collection, while Beca continues sipping at her juice.  
  
“Jesse,”  
  
“Yeah,” he takes another bite.  
  
“Whose candle is that?”  
  
“That’s a really excellent question.”

  
  
xxx

  
  
“Beca,” comes out hesitant, a little stilted and when Beca lifts her head to meet Jesse’s eyes, he’s standing as stiffly as the tone of his voice would suggest.  
  
“Hey,” she drags out slowly and clears her throat, her fingers playing with the cord of her headphones as she takes them from her bag. “What’s up?”  
  
Jesse watches her for a few moments, and Beca figures that he’s testing the waters so to speak, because as soon as she meets his eyes he seems to decide to sit.  
  
She wonders what was there that gave him that conclusion.  
  
“Beca this has gotten weird,” he goes right for it, no preamble and she has to avoid the earnest look in his eyes. “I’m sorry that I called your Dad, I didn’t rea--”  
  
“Jesse,” she interrupts, fingers rising to rub at her eyebrow and he stops. “Let’s just leave it okay? I shouldn’t have yelled at you, so let’s just leave it alone. Things got kind of crazy, so I’m sorry.”  
  
She looks at him and ignores the sick feeling at his slightly disappointed expression, and she’s not sure what he wanted to hear instead really because she’s still pissed that her Dad had seen reason to threaten their L.A. deal, and she’s still not entirely sold on the fact that if Jesse had just left well enough alone...  
  
He did come for her though. She knows that.  
  
“Okay,” she watches him swallow, but is relieved to see him smile slightly, though it isn’t even a fraction of the smiles he usually gives her, and that thought makes her both angry and sick at the same time. “I’m sorry too, I was just trying--” he stops again and sighs quietly.  
  
Beca flashes a tight smile and finds that she can’t really look at him, not when he’s watching her so closely, and she can feel his need to say more practically rolling off of him in waves. He must get the message that she’s not really up for this right now because he gets to his feet pretty quickly.  
  
“So uh,” he clears his throat, “I’m going to the radio station. I guess I’ll see you there later.”  
  
“Yeah, see you later,” she throws distractedly, and doesn’t look up from her equipment again until he leaves.  She grinds down on her teeth.  


 

xxx

  
  
She doesn’t sit outside anymore, definitely not at her spot anyways. It’s gotten too cold and with all her school work and that Aubrey crap she just--things have gotten better with Kimmy Jin and both can occupy the same room together in complete productive silence. She’s gotten a lot done since, you know.  
  
She hasn’t really spoken to Amy, or responded to any of Chloe’s texts, though the ginger girl had made several attempts to try and talk over a coffee. She definitely hasn’t spoken to Aubrey, though she saw her through the gym window once just before spring break and had to duck behind a group of students to avoid being seen.  
  
Jesse didn’t come around the radio station in the week before their vacation, which was kind of a relief considering, though she couldn’t help but notice that the room seemed much bigger when he wasn’t there. It’s not like it made her feel lonely or anything, it just occurs to her that she never realized how much space he seemed to take up when she’s turning the music up louder to fill in the spaces he isn’t.  
  
Anyways, she thinks that since she’s been so productive in her room that she probably won’t even bother doing the whole outside thing anymore. She can listen to her mixes perfectly well in the comfort of her own bed.  Or watch movies.  
  
(She opens her computer up to check her emails when her eyes catch on Jesse’s name buried under a whole list of unread mail from October. The subject line: “AND SO BEGINS YOUR MOVICATION” is in bold and she finds herself clicking it before she can stop herself. The list of films that Jesse has typed out extend past 50, but it’s the first ten on the list that she writes down with the intent of renting. Jesse’s own copy of The Breakfast Club is tucked underneath her philosophy textbook on her shelf, and she overextends her shoulder trying to reach for it.)  


 

xxx

 

  
She has her face pressed against his collarbone and chest, and would be slipping into delicious sleep if Jesse would just shut up for a minute.  
  
“You’re doing that talking thing again,” comes out muffled against his t-shirt, and Jesse’s hands still in her hair.  
  
“So you are awake,” he returns and tweaks at her braid, though she let’s it go because he’s warm and smells good. She can hear the grin in his voice when he says, “I thought I lost you somewhere around Marty crashing the Delorean and ‘great Scott!’”  
  
“You did, nerd,” she retorts, and buries her face closer to the heat of his skin where his neck meets shoulder. He grows quiet as she settles back against him, and she can feel his fingers begin to card through her hair again, loosening her braid with every tug.  
  
The spring breeze blows across her skin every few minutes, and it’s the combination of the smell of the fresh cut grass beneath her and the solid mass of boy that calls her back to sleep more than anything.  
  
She inhales deeply and shifts so that her leg fits more comfortably against his hip. “Did I miss much?” her lips brush against his skin, and she’s trying to make an effort to appear more alert.  
  
“Well, you missed Marty make out with his Mom,” Jesse’s voice comes out at a low timbre, and she can feel him swallow.  
  
“ _What_ ,” her eyes snap back open, and she cranes her neck to try to catch his gaze, incredulous. “You’re lying.”  
  
Jesse’s teeth flash when he grins and he gives the best shoulder shrug he can considering his slumped position against their backpacks and the length of girl he has pressed against his side.  
  
“And this is why you should pay more attention during your movication, you’re missing out on time paradox incest.”  
  
Beca’s eyes roll skyward and she gives him a pinch to his side before she settles back down against his chest.  
  
“Your battery is going to die soon,” she fires back and hides her smug smile in his t-shirt when Jesse’s eyes shoot to the computer screen and he swears under his breath.  
  
“I liked it better when you were silent and practically drooling on me,” Jesse shuts his laptop with an audible snap and shoves it over onto the grass next to the tangled mess of her headphones and jacket.  “We were just getting to the best part!” he agonizes, shoving the backpacks out from under him so that his head hits the grass and she reclines back with him.  
  
“His hand goes all see-through,” Jesse has his own hand raised up in front of him like he’s Hamlet, “and then that guitar rift? Johnny B.Goode Beca. _It’s classic_!”  
  
She has no idea what he’s talking about right now, but she blindly grabs for his gesticulating hand and settles it on her waist so that he has both arms wrapped around her now.  
  
“Shh,” she mumbles against his throat. “Beca has to meet Amy in an hour, it’s quiet time now.”  
  
It occurs to her later that it’s not really just her spot anymore.  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Movie Reference
> 
> -[1] Pitch Perfect, (2012) dir, Jason Moore  
> -Back to the Future, (1985) dir, Robert Zemeckis
> 
> Song Reference
> 
> -"Wild Ones" (2011), Flo Rida ft. Sia  
> -"The Hustle" (1975), Van McCoy & the Soul City Symphony  
> -"Johnny B. Goode" (1958) Chuck Berry
> 
>    
> ICCA dates for my own sanity
> 
> quarter final - first week of January  
> semifinal: february sometime?  
> finals: april, after spring break which is in march


	7. Mickey Mousing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beca rolls her eyes behind him and folds her arms over her chest. “I don’t do Halloween.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In honour of Halloween. Mostly friendship fic with a bit of fluff, and yes more Star Wars because it's become a personal head canon. 
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or the film that they came from. This is all in the name of fan fiction.

  
  
  
“I don’t understand why you have to go to a store for this,” Beca burrows down into her scarf the second she steps off the bus, narrowly missing Jesse who had stopped to wait for her. “Isn’t it just a black vest and tight pants?”  
  
“How dare you belittle Han Solo’s good name Beca,” Jesse falls into step beside her and jams his hands into his coat pockets. “There’s a lot more to the dashing scoundrel than polyester and swagger.”  
  
“Oh you mean the feathered hair?” Beca smirks.  
  
“Cute,” he narrows his eyes at her like he’s assessed her as a worthy opponent. “I think I’ll keep you.”  
  
She hides a smile at his dorkiness, and mouths at the woolen fabric keeping her neck warm. “I thought you said that Benji had a lifetime’s supply of Star Wars memorabilia anyways,” she sidesteps a mother and her child and looks back up at Jesse, “surely he has a Han Solo costume framed. Or maybe frozen in carbonite.”  
  
Jesse’s head whips down towards her, and she raises an eyebrow to challenge the wide grin that spreads across his face like she’s surprised him in the best possible way. It doesn’t make her stomach clench or anything.   
  
“I’m sorry, did you just make a movie reference?” He leans over so that he’s crowding her, trying to catch her in an embarrassed expression or at least a blush. She doesn’t give him the satisfaction and instead elbows him right in the side.   
  
It’s not like he thinks, Beca didn’t watch the movie or anything.  She may or may not have googled ‘Han Solo’ after Jesse had mentioned that he and Benji were going as Luke Skywalker and Han Solo to one of the campus Halloween parties. She also may have spoiled herself with the plot summary, but she’d let that little tidbit slip if he was getting too smiley that afternoon. Jesse hated spoilers.  
  
Even after her assault he lingers beside her a moment, their coats brushing up against each other.  
  
“He has a replica blaster, to answer your question,” Jesse changes the subject, and slows when they pull up to the front of the costume shop. “But no belt and holster so I’m doing my roomately duty to give him the most authentic Han Solo his Luke Skywalker has even seen.”  
  
“His lightsaber isn’t real, is it? And ‘roomately’ isn’t a word Professor,” she snarks and brushes past him when he opens the door for her.   
  
“Thank you Webster’s Dictionary,” Jesse laughs and slides in behind her, “and it’s not, though I’ve seen him practicing with it so I can’t say that it won’t decapitate someone anyways.”  
  
The store is a visual assault to Beca’s senses and she doesn’t even say anything when Jesse laughs at her terrified expression.   
  
“Do you think that we’ve entered one of the circles of hell?” she asks conversationally, and follows carefully behind Jesse who seems to know exactly where he’s going. A little girl skips past her with gold fairy wings tied to her back and a pirate hook in one hand. What the hell?   
  
“You haven’t told me what you’re being for Halloween yet,” Jesse comments over his shoulder and they weave left down another aisle of wigs and fake makeup. “Is it as a kitten? It’s a kitten isn’t it.”  
  
Beca rolls her eyes behind him and folds her arms over her chest. “I don’t do Halloween.”  
  
 _(“What!” Chloe’s eyes go wide at Beca’s admission and her hands go to her hips. “You have to do Halloween, it’s the best holiday. You get to dress up, look a little sexy,” Chloe’s smile has gone sultry and Beca shakes her head. “And,” she interrupts as if she could convince Beca otherwise, “you’re totally coming with the Bella’s to the Halloween kegger.” Chloe grabs Beca’s hands and smiles prettily, “it’s tradition.”_  
  
 _At the word ‘tradition’ Beca shoots a look over Chloe’s shoulder to Aubrey who has her arms crossed and is looking uptight and disapproving. That girl really needed to unclench._  
  
 _“Can we be anything we want?” Fat Amy chimes in, pushing her 80’s sweatband off of her forehead as she comes over to stand beside Beca._  
  
 _“Absolutely!” Chloe gushes and shares a smile, albeit more tentative, with Aubrey. “Last year Aubrey and I went as Batgirl and Wonder Woman.”_  
  
 _Beca raises an eyebrow and her eyes wander to Aubrey who clears her throat and looks away, embarrassed._  
  
 _“I was Wonder Woman once!” Stacie pipes in, her heels clicking on the theatre room floor. “It was actually a costume for the bedroom, but there really isn’t a difference. Between Halloween costumes and role playing I mean.”_  
  
 _Amy and Beca share an incredulous look, and Beca bites down hard on her lip to hold back the laughter. Cynthia Rose is nodding behind Stacie._  
  
 _“I call Mermaid!” Amy suddenly shouts to break the awkward silence, hand raised high in the air._  
  
 _“Oooh,” Jessica chirps, beaming “can I be Sailor Moon?”_  
  
 _“Sexy ghost,” Stacie cocks a hip proudly._  
  
 _“I don’t think that’s possible,” Amy makes a clicking sound with her teeth. “What with the whole covered in a bed sheet thing.”_  
  
 _“No but I have this bustier--”_  
  
 _“I was thinking of the Mad Hatter myself,” Cynthia Rose admits, snapping at her shoulders like she’s already wearing suspenders._  
  
 _“Okay but maybe we should--” Aubrey interjects, but is interrupted by a softly speaking Lily (“I collect animal skulls,”). “What was that?”_  
  
 _“Enough!” Aubrey’s voice comes out clear like a shot, and everyone shuts their mouth with an audible snap.  Beca bites down harder on her grin._  
  
 _Aubrey clears her throat again and gives a tight smile. “I think it’s great that we’re discussing our Halloween plans, but let’s not forget that Regionals are only two months away.”_  
  
 _“Only?” Amy mutters under her breath, and Beca chokes on her laugh._  
  
 _“So,” Aubrey shoots Fat Amy a look, “let’s not let this derail our focus. We can discuss this all after practice. From the top?”_  
  
 _Everyone slinks back into place, though Beca doesn’t miss the pleading expression on Chloe’s face when the ginger girl brushes past her. Beca caves in with a long exhale and a defeated nod. Okay fine, she’d go to this stupid party. But she definitely wasn’t going to dress up._  
  
 _Chloe claps excitedly in response._  
  
 _“Chloe?” Aubrey’s voice grates._  
  
 _“Sorry.”_ )  
  
Jesse’s reaction let’s her know that he isn’t at all surprised that she felt that way, and it irks her a little that he thinks he knows her so well after what, two months?  
  
“Not a fan of the ‘sexy’ thing,” he gives a disappointed sigh that she swats him for. “How about the serial killer thing,” he tugs a Jason Voorhees mask off the wall and covers his face with it. She gives an unimpressed head shake and keeps walking.  
  
“Or...” he bites at his cheek as he tosses the hockey mask to the side, “the fairy thing?” He’s got a magic wand in his hand and he’s waving it in front of her face in an attempt to stop her from moving around him.   
  
“Judging by that formidable look, I’m going to say no...” he chucks it behind him and she can hear it clatter on the floor. She’s still walking and he’s practically tripping over himself as he jogs backwards.   
  
“Okay wait, I got it,” he stops them both with a smug tug to his mouth and reaches for another mask on the shelf. “The animal thing.”   
  
Beca laughs when she turns to find Jesse’s face covered in a gorilla mask, his brown eyes blinking back at her through a mass of black fur and unattractive rubber.  She smiles and her fingers tug at the lip of his gorilla mask, tugging it up so that she can see that dimpled grin waiting for her. “Did I get it?” he laughs, her face still close enough to his that her cheek is warm with his every exhale.   
  
“No thanks King Kong,” she recovers after a strange pause where she can feel something skitter in her chest, and she has to regain control of this. She yanks the mask back down hard enough that he stumbles back into the shelving and she doesn’t bother to hold back a laugh.   
  
“Mean,” is all he says in reply, but she misses the long look her gives her when he tugs the mask off, she’s too busy retrieving a lightsaber from the next aisle.   
  
“So do you get one of these?” she presses the button on the plastic sword experimentally, and is rewarded when it lights up in a burst of purple and thrumming sound bites.  “Hey this is pretty cool,” she admits, gleeful smile on her face when she brings it up to stop right at Jesse’s throat.   
  
“Woah there,” Jesse’s hands go up, “let’s not be too hasty. I’ve got a long life to live and I haven’t even had lunch yet.”  
  
Beca presses the plastic into his collarbone anyways, but drops it when he fails to even wince. “So do you?” she repeats her question and tosses the lightsaber back into the pile she got it from.   
  
“Naw,” Jesse shrugs, and steps past her to look up at the rack of Star Wars costumes that Beca had completely missed. “I just get a gun and holster remember?” he winks when he catches her eye, but she just scoffs.   
  
“Here it is,” Jesse reaches forward, and just under a Darth Vader mask is a cheap looking plastic gun holster and “blaster”, the kind of holster that slings low on the hip if the really corny picture on the packaging is anything to go by.   
  
“Be still my heart,” Beca responds dryly, and moves past him to take a look at the full Star Wars costumes.   
  
“Is this what Benji gets to wear underneath his Harry Potter robes?” Beca fingers a plastic gold bikini, staring at it incredulously because really, who in their right mind would wear something like that for Halloween. Or ever.   
  
She turns to look over at Jesse but he’s already looking at her like the most amazing idea had just dawned on him. “What?” she asks self consciously, withdrawing her hand like it had been burned.   
  
“Beca you have to be Leia,” is all he says, and his face is completely serious.  
  
“I’m sorry who?” she screws her face up and takes a step back, not liking the situation. “Actually don’t answer that because I’m not dressing up remember? No Halloween for this girl.”   
  
“No,” Jesse pleads, “it’s perfect. I go as Han, Benji goes as Luke and you go as Leia. It finishes the trio! And you don’t _have_ to wear this...” his voice trails off as he gets a look at the gold bikini, and she actually sees his adam’s apple bob when he swallows hard. “She uh,” he clears his throat, “she also wears this white robe thing. Like a space nun, or something.”  
  
Oh right, because that sounded _awesome_.  
  
“Get your gun nerd boy,” she shakes her head and walks around his gesturing figure. “I’m not dressing up!”  
  
“Aw Beca,” he sighs, “come on, it’ll be totally perfect. And make Benji really happy. And me!” he’s yelling after her retreating figure now. “You could make your good friend Jesse really--and she’s not listening to me.”   
  
\---  
The next day when she opens her computer there are two messages from Jesse waiting for her.  
  
 _So I noticed that you didn’t really say no to the whole Leia thing. Should I take this as a yes?_  
 _-Jesse_  
  
Beca scrubs at her face and let’s out a sigh, quickly deleting the message before moving on to the next one.   
  
_By the way, I found this awesome mix that i thought you should listen to. Maybe it’ll give you some ideas or whatever. Stay golden ponyboy!_  
 _-Jesse_  
  
She perks up a bit, interested and a little touched (though she’d never admit it) that Jesse would listen to something and think of her. Well, not _think_ of her, but think that she might like it or something. Shutup.   
  
When she clicks on the attachment however, a whole flood of braided buns, whites robes and metal bikinis pop up on her screen.   
  
Oh for the love of...   
  
_______  
  
“Here,” Luke heaves a box of records onto the table, nearly crushing Beca’s lunch in the process. “Jesse didn’t get to these yesterday, so why don’t you start where his lazy arse finished,” he flashes her a quick smile before he’s taking his own fine ass back into the radio booth.   
  
Beca controls the disappointment with a practiced exhale and flips past the first record. A picture of Princess Leia stares back up at her. She flips to the second to see Carrie Fischer and her long braid. The next is one with Leia in what looks like a ski suit. When Beca sees a flash of gold and flesh, she shoves the crate away from her, not even caring if it tips over the other side.   
  
_____  
  
“Beca do we need to have a talk?” Aubrey’s voice is thin and angry, and Beca didn’t think she’d been that much of a smartass at last practice.   
  
“Sorry?” she arches a brow.  
  
“You may not care to be _compromised_ by a Treble, but you will _not_ bring this team down with your whoring about, understand? I’m not your errand girl!” her words are venomous enough that Aubrey is breathing hard with the effort to contain her anger. Waiting for no response from Beca, the blonde merely shoves a letter into Beca’s shoulder and storms off towards Chloe.  
  
“What jumped up and bit her?” Amy chortles, and shoots Beca an incredulous look. For her part Beca just shakes her head and snatches the letter off of the floor, eyebrow furrowed in puzzlement.   
  
“I have no id--oh what the fuck,” Beca’s head falls back in absolute irritation when she opens the letter to a picture of a poorly drawn bikini in what looks like highlighter and crayon, but no actual note.  
  
“Aw, that's cute," Amy peers over Beca's shoulder. "Did a very small human draw this for you?" Beca just shakes her head.

"Oh. Well if you squint,” Amy tries to diffuse the situation, and Beca let’s the blonde girl take the picture from her, “it looks a bit like a happy face?”

Beca feels a migraine coming on.   
  
_____  
  
 **To: Beca**  
 **From: Jesse**  
  
 _i pushed it a little too far didn’t i?_  
  
 **To: Jesse**  
 **From: Beca**  
  
 _we’ve got a winner ladies and gentlemen!_  
  
 **To: Beca**  
 **From: Jesse**  
  
 _alright, alright i get it. but you’ll at least wear some cat ears or something right_?  
  
 **To: Jesse**  
 **From: Beca**  
  
 _you didn’t buy that bikini costume did you?_  
  
 **To: Beca**  
 **From: Jesse**  
  
 _nice change of subject and....it was the only one benji didn’t have. gotta catch ‘em all beca_

**To: Beca**  
 **From: Jesse**  
  
 _you know i was only kidding right? you’re still coming._  
  
 **To: Beca**  
 **From: Jesse**  
  
 _beca?_  
  
Beca hides a smile and tuckers her phone into her pocket.  
  
_________  
  
Halloween comes and Beca tags along with the rest of the brightly coloured Bellas, the only attempt at a costume on her is even darker eyeliner than usual and a few splatters of fake blood on her white tank top, courtesy of Chloe.   
  
She sees Benji first, he’s pretty hard to miss when there’s a 5 foot radius all around him, and he’s swinging a bright green lightsaber around like it’s for a performance. He looks happy talking to Jesse though, and Beca has to smile at Benji’s friendly enthusiasm.   
  
They don’t see her yet, though she doesn’t even top 5’5 so it’s not hard for Beca to disappear behind the throngs of brightly costumed people. It gives her time to get a good look at Jesse as she makes her way over to them.   
  
She can see that he took the tight pants to heart, she isn’t even embarrassed to admit that her eyes trail over the silhouette of his thighs and ass, lingering on the slump of his gun holster as it slings low on his hip.   
  
She wets her lips slightly at the image, and it’s totally okay because she can admit that her friend is an attractive specimen and there’s definitely nothing wrong with appreciating a good looking guy in tight pants on Halloween of all days.   
  
“Who let you nerds in?” she opens, and is pleased when Jesse whips around at the sound of her voice.   
  
“Hey Beca,” Benji smiles warmly. “It’s a pretty happening party isn’t it? I think there’s even a keg here....somewhere,” his voice trails off as he searches for it, and Beca grins.   
  
“It’s great,” Beca agrees, though she won’t say that it’s her usual venue of social interaction.   
  
“Oh and don’t worry about the whole Leia thing” he rushes to add, “it probably would have been awkward anyways since you’re my sister, and Han’s girlfriend, but you totally kiss me--er” he swallows,”not that I thought you would.”  
  
“Maybe next year,” she assures him, and Benji visibly relaxes.  
  
“Cool,” he says like he’s trying the word out. “Well I’m going to get us some beers. Beca?”   
  
She nods and thanks him, but Benji is already disappearing into the crowd.  
  
Jesse is watching her.  
  
“So no bikini huh?” he offers without apology, and she meets his eyes with a challenging look.   
  
“You’re out of luck, but good try. Really persistent aren’t you?”  
  
Jesse chuckles, not at all put off by her unimpressed tone. “Well I’m just glad that you’re dressed up at all. You are dressed up right...” he seems hesitant as he takes in her clumsy blood spatters and dark makeup. “You’re a...”  
  
“Zombie,” she grins, slightly feral, and the music pounds in the background.   
  
“You are probably the worst zombie I have ever seen."  
  
“I know,” she laughs, pleased, and Jesse’s grin dimples in response. They’re quiet for a moment and Beca takes a cursory glance around the room, catching sight of Amy doing a rendition of her mermaid dancing for a perplexed Bumper over in the corner. She can see Chloe, Aubrey, and another girl chatting animatedly, Aubrey’s face much more relaxed and happy than when Beca normally sees it.   
  
“So were you serious about Princess Leia next year?” Jesse’s voice brings her attention to him, and she snorts.  
  
She turns to look at him and finds herself warming under those earnest eyes and kind smile. She wonders how this boy has found the motivation to stick by her when she’s been more threatening than friendly, more dismissive than open.  It’s a passing thought that requires too much depth and honesty and it has no place flitting through her mind right now.  
  
She disregards and her expression goes from serious to teasing in a matter of moments.   
  
“Who says I’m not wearing a gold bikini under all of this?” her voice is flip, and she enjoys the gobsmacked look on Jesse’s face when she brushes past him to go look for her beer.   
  
“Damn,” she hears him groan behind her, and Beca’s smile flashes smugly as she weaves her way through the crowd.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Movie References:
> 
> -Star Wars Episode VI: The Return of the Jedi (1983) dir., Richard Marquand  
> -Friday the 13th (1980) dir., Sean S. Cunningham  
> -King Kong (1933)   
> -The Outsiders (1983) dir., Francis Ford Coppola


	8. Meter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beca offers her hand with a long exhale and a dirty look. Jesse smiles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 3 scenes that could have happened, and I’ve got more for the next chapter! I want to thank everyone who has been kind enough to review, I really appreciate your comments. I can’t improve unless you let me know what you think!

**1\.  Luke doesn’t get his lunch**

  
  
Beca watches Jesse go, muttering under his breath like Luke has made a personal affront to all he holds dear to this world. He’s kind of charming, she guesses, that dorky enthusiasm and persistence is probably high on some bubbly co-eds list of _totally bangable traits_. Like, _for sure_.   
  
He’s almost as competitive as she is, in fact he’s been doing a pretty good job of cloying that trait out of her, enough that they’ll spend 10 minutes firing back pop culture references (him) and sharp retorts (her) and she’ll find her blood pumping like she was gearing up for another go.   
  
He’s got that voice too, she thinks. The kind of voice that has personality enough for theatre, but while Beca could see Jesse on a stage for no reason other than the fact that he’d think it was _fun_ , she kind of likes him and his voice right here in the radio station. With her.   
  
Euch, Beca’s mouth slides into a grimace, that thought went one too far.  
  
Still, Jesse also isn’t too bad to look at. Bambi eyed and strong jawed. She kind of wonders why Jesse didn’t feel the need to compare six packs with Luke. She knows he has some definition down there, he doesn’t exactly understand personal space so she’s had a few close brushes here and there.  
  
She kind of wants a private show.   
  
Oh god. Shut up.  
  
Beca slides a look over to a retreating Luke, her fingers toying with the usb stick in her hand. Screw it.

“I’m going for lunch,” Beca tosses back over her shoulder, tucking her mix back into her pocket and making after Jesse.  
  
She must have been lost in her thoughts longer than she thought, because Jesse is nearly across the station parking lot by the time she catches up to him.   
  
“Hey,” Beca calls out to him when she sees him, “nerd!”  
  
Jesse is several feet from the front door, and he’s got his tanned hands stuffed into his pockets when he turns to look at her, caught off guard.  
  
“I’m sorry,” Jesse recovers, looking behind his shoulder. “Am I the nerd you’re looking for? You seem to sling that insult around loosely,” he gives an endearing shrug of his shoulders “I just want to be sure.” He smiles.  
  
“Ouch,” Beca grins, and makes her way across the pavement towards him. “Should I get some ice for that burn?”  
  
“I do have dinosaur ice cubes back in my room,” he waggles his eyebrows comically, and she elbows him hard in the side.  
  
“Do you have time for that, Casanova?” Beca hitches a thumb back towards the radio station they’d just exited. “Aren’t you fetching burgers?”  
  
Jesse’s expression darkens, “thank you for that.”  
  
Beca laughs and steals forward to slide her hand around his bicep. Jesse’s eyebrows go way up.  
  
“Want to eat his lunch instead?” she tugs at his arm and brings him back to face her, smile a bit devious. “His six pack could probably survive a few more hours without it.”  
  
“Woah, woah, wait. Two things. First,” he holds up a finger and Beca waits patiently for him to continue. “Are we really so sure it was a full six pack?” he questions, and completely ignores Beca’s look of complete exasperation when he does.  
  
“And second,” he holds up a second finger, “have I ever mentioned how much I enjoy evil Beca? I mean Alternative Beca is a real treat,” he sets a hand on her shoulder as if to placate her, “don’t get me wrong. But I think evil Beca brings a whole new level of black eyeliner and fear into the radio station.”  
  
“I’ll be sure to file your request,” she dips into a mock curtsey, which earns a pleasant laugh from the auburn hair boy.   
  
“Oh and that first thing,” Beca turns to meet his eyes. ”I’d actually say that it was more of a 12-pack,” she winces sympathetically, but leans over to pat at his abdomen, “but you’re not too  bad yourself.”  
  
Jesse gapes at her. “Can I get that in writing?”  
  
  
_______

  
  
**2\. Beca doesn’t end up in jail.**

  
  
3 seconds. From the first signs of Jesse’s trouble, it only takes Beca 3 seconds to push her way through the cornucopia of fighting man-children and lay that deranged weasel guy out flat on the tiled floor.   
  
She hits him so hard she feels something crack in her hand.   
  
“Fuck,” Beca recoils, shaking the appendage out of reflex and immediately regretting her decision. “Oh, _fuck_!”  
  
“Oh my God,” drops from Jesse’s mouth in disbelief. “Oh my G _od_ ” he has his hands in his hair like he’s struggling to comprehend the events taking place. “Oh my God Beca-”  
  
“So you’ve _said_ Jesse,” Beca snaps, and she’s bent over slightly, hand cradled to her chest, and teeth sunk deep enough into her lip to draw blood.   
  
“Are you hurt? You’re hurt,” he sounds alarmed, but she can barely hear him over the cacophony of this damn situation.  
  
“Oh,” the little masochistic weasel moans blissfully, rolling over so that he can push himself up off the floor. “That’s the good stuff baby. Hit me again!” he begs so damn eagerly, eyes glittering as he gets back into her personal space. “The stomach maybe?”  
  
“Hey,” Jesse barks, and shoves the guy backwards so that he can get a protective hand on her arm. “Get away from-”  
  
“The kraken has been unleashed!!” comes Amy’s roar out of nowhere, and all three of them blink back over at her stupidly. She has the trophy in her hand and Beca isn’t sure where exactly she had gotten it.  
  
“Oh ho ho,” weasel man looks positively giddy, “are you going to slap me around with that?”  
  
“No, I’m going to shove this up your bum like a hot poker!” Amy makes stabbing motions towards the little bugger, like some sort of deranged fencer.  
  
“Amy I don’t think that’s a good ide--”  
  
“For Tasmania!” Amy shouts and if Jesse hadn’t pulled Beca bodily towards him, Beca probably would be at the bottom of the Amy dog pile right now.   
  
“Amy!” shrieks Aubrey from somewhere, and Jesse takes the distraction as opportunity to tug Beca down the hallway and away from the fighting.   
  
“What are you, manhandling me?” Beca scoffs, and stumbles a bit when he pushes her down onto a registration table tucked neatly against the hallway wall.   
  
“Beca you just fractured your hand trying to defend my honour,” Jesse shakes his head at her and tries to take a look at the hand pressed tightly to her breastbone.  His touch is gentle, but Beca balks at it.   
  
“Oh come on Million Dollar Baby,”Jesse looks incredulous at her reaction and makes another attempt at grabbing her hand. She looks the other way. “You _can’t_ be serious. Let me see it,” Jesse stares her down..   
  
Beca glares back, and there’s the distant sound of Amy cheering and the thud of a body hitting the floor from the other room.   
  
“Don’t make me call Professor Mitchell,” Jesse warns.  
  
Beca offers her hand with a long exhale and a dirty look. Jesse smiles.  
  
“His face was harder than I thought,” she winces when Jesse runs his fingers along hers, unfolding them from the fist she’d balled them into.  
  
“Yeah,” Jesse arches a brow, testing the stretch of muscle in her palm, “I’m always surprised how hard bone is when I deck people in the face. _Weird_.”   
  
Beca snorts and dips her head, watching him knead the flesh of her palm. His skin is very warm, and feather light, careful with the pressure of his touch lest he hurt her more.   
  
“You know, most people use their words to humiliate grown men,” Jesse comments blithely, pressing down on the joint of her fingers.   
  
“Oh, did you not see?” Beca points over her shoulder to where the sounds of fighting still continue.  “He was doing a _pretty_ good job of humiliating himself,” she flashes a smile , “no help needed.”  
  
Jesse chuckles lowly, but keeps his attention on the task at hand. His brow puckers every time he puts pressure on her hand, every touch incites a quirk of his mouth or a change in expression. He has such an expressive face that Beca finds herself entranced by it, safe in watching him because he’s watching her. She holds her breath when he turns her hand over to examine her knuckles, fingertips trailing each raised bump of musculature and bone. She clears her throat.  
  
He looks up at the sound, and Beca is surprised to see the concern there, like he had been waiting for her to air it. His hold on her wrist tightens.  
  
“So what’s my prognosis,” she breaths airily, and adjusts her collar of her Bella uniform with her other hand. “ _Doctor_.”  
  
“Finally,” Jesse chuckles, and shifts closer so that her knees are basically brushing his thighs, “some respect. Nothing looks broken, just a bit bruised.”  
  
Beca’s mouth dries as her stomach twists uncomfortably. “So,” she swallows and exaggerates a smirk, “can I have my hand back then?”  
  
Jesse startles and looks down to see that yes, her hand was still in his, and he had essentially wrapped it around his own.   
  
“Anything for my hero,” he recovers, batting his eyelashes   
  
“Well,” Beca shrugs dismissively, “you _are_ a pretty vulnerable young maiden. I had to do what I could.”  
  
Jesse doesn’t answer her, but he’s got this...look on his face like he’s filing this whole night away for later perusal, his eyes are far too soft for having nearly been attacked by a guy who probably has a trophy stuck up his butt at this present moment.   
  
Beca finds herself staring back at him, her throbbing hand settled listlessly against her thigh, a brush away from where his own hand has fallen to brace himself above her.   
  
“Amy, _no_ ” comes from the hallway beyond, before the air is filled with the shrieking sound of splintering glass, then the crash of shards and metal.   
  
“I’m afraid to ask,” Jesse utters in the complete silence that follows, and Beca is too busy gaping in the direction of the school entranceway to agree.   
  
Suddenly Amy is bounding towards them, arms pumping at her sides as if to make her getaway faster.  
  
“Amy,” Beca straightens where she sits, brow furrowed. “What are you doing?”  
  
“Vertical running!” Amy cries, sprinting past them, “I’m vertical running!”[1]

  
____

  
  
**3\.  Jesse doesn’t close the door in her face.**

  
  
Jesse almost gets the door closed before Beca inserts her boot between the doorjamb and slowly dwindling space, and _shoves_.  
  
Jesse looks suitably startled, and Beca acknowledges that she probably nearly smoked him in the face with that move.   
  
“What the hell Beca,” Jesse’s brow furrows.  
  
She takes one step forward and slides her hands into that dark hair of his, and yanks. His teeth nearly collide with hers, but she uses his momentum to pull him back against her and the door, swallowing his alarmed protest with her lips.  
  
He freezes against her, his hands still braced against her shoulders when he made an attempt to fend off what he thought was going to be a violent attack. There is violence in the way she kisses him, the way she draws his mouth open with a slide of her tongue, and fists his thick hair. He doesn’t understand what’s going on, so she gives and gives until his body sags a bit against her, and his mouth goes pliant.  
  
“I get it,” she exhales against his mouth, and Jesse’s lips are so close to her own that he’s practically inhaling the words as she says them.   
  
He stares at her, disheveled, vulnerable and confused and she feels her jaw tighten.   
  
“I know,” she says more firmly. She pushes people away because it’s easier than taking the risk that comes with forming real attachments and deeper relationships. She sees it in the way she’s pushed the Bellas away, her Father, Jesse. Her friend. Her...  
  
He sighs, the air comes out deep from his chest and he bows his head so that their foreheads are touching.   
  
She appreciates him. She appreciates his friendship. She wants to make a gesture. She wants this. She waits.   
  
Jesse’s hand comes up to her hair, and she keeps still as he weaves his fingers through it, his palm coming to rest against her cheek, his thumb brushing at the skin there.   
  
“I’m sorry,” he says, expression so earnest that she breaks a little. “That stuff I--You didn’t have to. You--” Idiot, she thinks, and she finds it difficult to fight a grin.   
  
His face splits into a broad smile and he gives up.  
  
The force in which he captures her lips sends her head knocking against the door, and they both dissolve into laughter as he apologizes _again_. His hand comes up to cradle the back of her head, and he gives a sloppy kiss to her hair before she tugs him down to where she wants him.   
  
She is just wrapping her arms around his neck when a loud clattering of metal and wood nearly has her punching him in the neck instead.   
  
Benji emerges suddenly from a box, and Beca stares at him in stunned silence.  
  
“Hi Beca,” Benji waves nervously and adjusts his cape.   
  
She can feel Jesse’s laugh rumble against her body before it even bubbles out of his mouth, and she pinches him for letting her do any of that when his roommate was in the room. In some sort of...box.  
  
“Yeah,” she gives a mortified head nod, “nice to see you Benji. Didn’t see you there.” When Jesse can’t hold back his happy laughter, Beca doesn’t bother holding back her small grin either.  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm very sorry for how long this update took, I have lots to come including a few racier ones and a few that focus more on their friendship. 
> 
> Movie References
> 
> -Million Dollar Baby, (2004) dir., Clint Eastwood  
> -Pitch Perfect (2012) dir., Jason Moore


	9. Motive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Break a leg,” he smirks, eyes glittering in amusement. “Jackass,” she grumbles when she catches her breath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please excuse any grammatical errors, I will revisit and correct! 
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own these characters or the movie that they came from. This is all written in the name of fan fiction.

 

________________

_**It starts like this:** _

__

“Well you have to keep the heels,” Chloe argues through the phone, and Beca has to press it even harder into her shoulder with her chin just to hear her properly. “Legs are a weapon Beca, and the Bellas should use that.”

“You mean sex is a weapon,” Beca replies, and makes a face as she struggles to pull her belt as tight as it will go. What the hell was with it? Was it always so damn big?

“They just wear what they want. I mean--”Beca grunts and fumbles with the silver buckle, “Aubrey would probably fly a thousand miles just to kill me if we weren't at least colour coordinated, so I’ve got the blue covered.”

Chloe laughs in agreement.

“Well, do you at least have your scarves?” Beca can hear Chloe rustling with something in the background. “I,” the ginger stresses, sounding pleased, “have mine tied into a scrunchie. For luck!”

Beca sighs in affectionate exasperation and turns to take a look at the other Bellas who are putting the finishing touches to their uniforms. Beca can see Lilly’s blue and yellow scarf tucked in the back pocket of her jeans.

“They’re burning them as we speak,” Beca deadpans, and makes another harsh tug at her stupid belt.

“Incoming,” Amy suddenly calls out, and Beca follows Amy's voice to see Jesse emerge from the side of the Frat House. “Enemy has been spotted. Mind your tits ladies, he might have Mexican food.”

“Woah now,” Jesse lifts his arms in surrender and Beca sees now that he’s got a white tissue caught between his fingers. What a complete dork. “I’ve only come here to sabotage you, don’t be hasty.”

“Oh, I forgot to tell you!” Chloe is still chattering in her ear, but Beca has her eyes on her grinning boyfriend and one eyebrow raised.

“Hi,” he mouths silently, coming to stop just in front of her.

“What are you doing here?” she mouths back, suspicious. Jesse just shrugs in an overly casual manner and opens his mouth again to speak, but Beca holds a finger up for him to wait.

“That’s awesome and I heard none of it,” Beca tells Chloe, and Chloe gives her a long indignant scoff. “But call me later,” she says into her shoulder uncomfortably, “my boyfriend is being sketchy at the moment.”

Beca rolls her eyes at the predictable cooing Chloe gives as a response, and shares a look with Jesse who is just watching her in amused silence.

“Happy treble boning!” she sing songs, before offering her goodbyes and leaving a dial-tone in Beca’s ear.

“Chloe says hi,” Beca reaches up to retrieve her phone from the cradle of her neck.

“Hi Chloe,” Jesse smiles, and steps closer, fingers tangling in the belt loops of her jeans. The unfastened and incorrigible belt hangs loosely between them.

“Are you spying on us?” Beca crosses her arms over her chest, but allows him to tug her forward, enough that his hip bones press into the fabric of her black vest. He feels warm.

“Guilty as charged. Are you going to punish me?”

Beca smirks, toying with the idea.

“I’ve given up my life of crime,” she tosses her head back, “Amy does all my pinch-hitting now.”

“Well it’s a good thing that I’m here to wish you luck then,” he says, and his teeth flash white at her surprised expression.

Oh.

“It’s just a mixer,” Beca throws her thumb over her shoulder as if somehow gesticulating her point. “I think we can scrape by unscathed.”

Jesse doesn’t look so sure, but she’s distracted by the little circles he’s drawing on her stomach where his fingers have slipped under her shirt. Sneaky bastard.

“You don’t have to be brave Beca,” he’s leaning in closer now, his breath a warm puff of air on her mouth. “I know what a harrowing experience it was last year.”

Beca opens her mouth to protest, but Jesse takes the opportunity to steal forward, pressing his warm lips against hers. It takes her back a moment, and her arms get caught between their bodies, forcing Beca to move them before he bruises her chest. She’s able to free one hand and slide it up the muscled plane of his chest, while the other reaches up to fist in his hair.

He kisses her slowly and languidly, like he plans on enjoying himself and taking his time doing so. She can’t help the small sigh that escapes her when Jesse licks his way into her mouth, his grip on her jeans tightening enough that his fingers slip past the waistband and against her skin.

“By the way,” he pants against the seam of her lips, voice somehow steady amidst all of this. “This,” he continues, reaching down to tug at the leather strap of her belt and pull Beca’s pelvis directly into his. “Is _my_ belt.”

Beca leans back, brow furrowed and eyes dazed.

“Good luck,” he pecks her on the cheek before she can stumble through a response and untangles her hands from around his neck. She’s embarrassed enough to admit that her body leans in his direction anyways.

He leaves her with a wink and a far too smug expression of his stupid face.

What.

“What,” Beca gapes, blinking owlishly at his retreating form.

Cynthia Rose looks impressed, but it’s Amy whose eyebrows are almost higher than Beca’s at the moment.

“Question,” Amy says after a moment, raising her hand. “Are you going to hit that like the fist of an angry god?”

Beca turns a bit red and struggles to formulate the proper words to address such a question. She doesn’t get far.

“Yeah,” Beca admits, resigned. Picking up the two ends of what she now obviously sees is Jesse’s belt, Beca gives a mighty tug and fastens the belt as tight as it will go. Smartass.

____

_**And it becomes a thing:** _

__

Normally Beca Mitchell would rather been consumed in fire than acknowledge that a time exists before 10 am. However, for the sake of revenge, allowances must be made for ungodly hours of the morning.

Jesse had a mid-term that morning in his film studies class, but he was already gone when she had awoken that morning, alone and slightly chilled without all that male body heat stretched out beneath her. It was that lack of warmth or perhaps Benji’s nonsensical mutterings that had Beca blinking back at the red 7:50 of Jesse’s alarm clock. He’d left before she could wish him good luck and now here she was, sleep deprived and silently stealing into his film studies class at 8:20 in the morning.

Jesse had tried to fluster her that last week when he'd showed up at their mixer. He'd be unsuccessful because please, this wasn't amateur hour. Beca, however, was well aware of the power she had over said boy's emotions and if it was a game of chicken he wanted, it was a game he would get.

Or maybe he really did just want to wish her good luck. Enh, whatever.

The professor is only just arriving when Beca spots Jesse’s head of dark auburn hair somewhere near the the middle of the lecture hall.

The middle? Beca scoffs. She would have pegged him for a front row type of guy.

He’s leaning forward in his chair, arms draped over the seats in front of him, his fingers tapping out a rhythm on the plastic. He laughs at something his seatmate says, a perky blonde with a cheerful smile.

Ugh, Beca grimaces, sparing another look at the mostly awake sophomores mingling about like they had never needed a coffee in their life. They had a midterm, what the hell could they possibly be smiling about?

“And this is why I sit at the back,” Beca grunts under her breath, sidestepping a friendly co-ed who apologizes profusely for stepping into her. “When I actually _go_ to class,” she amends.

No one smiles in the back, unless they were looking at cat pictures in the safety of the corner, or watching Friends with the volume way up in their headphones.

Beca sighs and pushes the sleeves up of the over-sized sweater she’d grabbed off of Jesse’s floor on her way out. It was his of course, all of his clothing swallowed her up until you could just make out her face, this morning’s model was a red polo with alarmingly long sleeves.

She tugs at the material again as she makes her way down the steps to where her boyfriend is holding court.

“Alright,” the professor’s voice cuts through the din of chatter, “take your seats so that we may begin the examination my young scholars!”

Beca winces.

As everyone settles into their seats, Beca quickly darts forward and slides into the one just beside Jesse.

“Hey,” she whispers, “got a pen?”

She almost snorts when he actually goes to retrieve one out of polite reflex, only to freeze when he registers her voice. He whirls around and stares at her.

“Beca?” he looks absolutely floored. “It’s 8:30 in the morning.” A pause. “Are you aware of this?”

Beca wonders if she should be insulted that her morning laziness is well known, or flattered that he knows her so well. She decides to be neither.

“It's payback time bitch,” she leans forward and catches that full bottom lip between her own, pushing him back into the crappy plastic chair.

He inhales sharply against her mouth, eyes sliding shut as he allows her to pin him against the chair, her small hands cupping the strong breadth of his jaw. Who was he to question where and when his girlfriend made out with him? She muffles his grunt when she slides into his lap, pining him further into the seat with a slow grind of her hips.

“Perhaps,” the professor’s voice suddenly rings out, “once our paramours have finished, we may get the exam started?”

There is a clatter of laughter that brings both out of the moment, Beca looking smug and Jesse looking justifiably embarrassed but utterly pleased.

“Good luck,” she ignores the titters of his classmates, and when he reaches for her again, she deftly swings herself out of her chair and out of his grasp.

He groans when he slumps back into his seat, eyes heavy with the promise of repercussions after he finishes the damn mid term.

“Will that be on the exam?” some boy in the fourth row snickers.

So worth it.

\---

  
“Beca,” Jesse calls from somewhere over her shoulder, and she can hear his sneakers shuffling closer.

“Yeah?” she answers distractedly, bent over the laptop in the radio booth, brow knit in concentration. “What is it?”

He nearly scares the shit out of her when she turns and he’s totally already in her space.

She doesn’t even have time to make a sound before Jesse has her chin in his hands and presses his lips against hers so hard that he bends her over the back of the computer chair. She gasps.

“Break a leg,” he smirks, eyes glittering in amusement.

“Jackass,” she grumbles when she catches her breath.

“Gross,” the new intern groans from beyond the booth window.

__

 _ **And then it changes into something...more**_ :

 

“You’re going down,” Jesse mimes a ship blow up, complete with sound effects, and Beca rolls her eyes from across the divide where the Bellas are huddled for the riff-off.

“You’re a giant dork,” she retorts. Jesse shrugs, because yeah, it’s true.

“Not this shit again,” Donald’s groan comes from somewhere behind Jesse, but Beca ignores it when she steps over the imaginary line separating her group from his.

Jesse knows what’s coming, she can see him swallow, eyes locked on hers in anticipation.

“Try for a little originality,” Donald continues, ignored. “Yep, here we go ladies and gentlemen.”

They’re wearing matching grins when Beca grabs him by his shirtfront and tugs Jesse down to her level, pressing a long kiss to that full mouth of his. She can feel his smile broaden when she nips at the swell of his bottom lip, and she tightens her hold on him.

Beca opens her mouth to--

“ _Good luck_ ” Donald’s voice interrupts at a drone, and he’s surrounded by the equally bored looking trebles. “We know.”

Benjii applauds loudly for them anyways.

 

____

 

She swings her bag off her shoulder, not giving a shit where it lands, and collapses with a groan onto Jesse's bed.

"I'm sorry," Jesse says without looking up from his laptop, "do I know you?"

Beca rewards his quip by sprawling out on his bed further, her arm smacking his stomach.

" _Oh_ that's who you are."

Beca gives an unamused smile and settles down further into his pillows. He really did have far better pillows than she did. Didn't she get some sort of spawn of professor deal? Actually, come to think of it, was his bed bigger too?

He hasn't even looked at her since she's entered the room, and Beca can hear him furiously typing away.

"15 page paper," he answers before she can even ask "and yes it is due tomorrow, and no I didn't start today. I actually started two days ago," he pauses, "and then I forgot about it."

"I make no judgement," she yawns and plants a sloppy kiss to the bridge of his nose in support. Whatever, she was tired.

"Thanks," he chuckles. "Have you always been so uncoordinated or am just distractingly sexy today?"

"Shut up," she retorts.

He says nothing and only resumes typing, but she can see that insufferable grin on his face from the corner of her eye.

She moves down, and Jesse instinctively shifts so that she can lay her head on his thigh without hitting the laptop. He lets her doze off on him when he's trying to fire off a term paper so she guesses she can let it go.

She pinches him anyways.

___

  
“Beca hold up a minute,” Jesse pushes past the other Bellas who are waiting in the wings, making sure to fist bump Amy when get steps past her.

Beca’s readjusting her leather jacket, the stage hand giving her a one minute warning.

“Trying to throw me off my game?” she jokes when he stops beside her. “Impart lasting words of wisdom? Kidnapping me?”

“All three,” he leans down to her upturned face and places a quick kiss to her jaw for luck. “Here’s your game, totally thrown off,” he trails those kisses up her jaw line towards her ear, and she laughs against him when he leans over to pinch her ass.

“You’re on!” the stage hand urges, and the various Bellas are stepping past the two of them, teasing in their playful shoves, though Amy mouths for her to hurry this shit up.

“Jesse I have to go,” Beca tries to extricate herself from his grasp, but he nuzzles her cheek instead. “Your plans for sabotage are failing miserably, I’m on to your game. _Jesse_!”

He lets her go, but not without leaving one last kiss on her lips, smiling against her mouth.

“But I haven’t gotten to the kidnapping part yet,” he laments, and she slaps him in the chest.

“Later,” she promises, voice in a whispers as she turns to take her mark on stage. “You can even tie me up.”

Jesse heaves a long sigh, unable to keep the stupid smile off his face during their entire set.

  
___

 

“Jesse stop it, you look like Mr.Bean in that getup. Lose the bow tie.”

“What?” he sounds alarmed, “are you _serious_? You’re not serious. _Are_ you serious?”

Beca sighs and tugs the bowtie loose from his neck. “You’re reaching uptight nancy boy levels, yes. Would you just relax? You’ve met my Dad before.” She pauses, throwing the tie somewhere over her shoulder. “Actually you and my Dad have reached weird drinking buddy levels that I find both disgusting,” she pushes the dinner jacket off his shoulders and let’s it pool on the floor, “and terrifying.”

Jesse is silent for a moment. “You just want to get me naked.”

“Hey, “ she smirks “it was you who made the no-sex-under-your-Dad’s-roof rule. Not me.”

“And let the only semi-responsible adult catch us in flagrante?” he let’s her tug his polo over his head, wincing when it catches at his ears. “I don’t think so Rebecca Mitchell.” He looks pale at the thought and Beca snickers.

“Well,” she shrugs and helps him into the dark plaid button up she’d bought him for his birthday. “I’m wearing the lace panties, if you change your min-- _Jesse_ ” she throws her hands up in exasperation when he startles violenty, “I am _not_ sewing that button back on you spaz. Find your duct tape.”

Jesse colours and regains his composure, shooting Beca dirty look.

“Vile temptress,” he mumbles, and Beca recognizes that of all the situations she’s ever seen him in, all of the competitions, the public declarations, he has never been this nervous. He’s almost shaking with anxiety.

She smiles to herself as she tucks one button into its hole after another, pausing for a moment when she reaches his chest. She hears him swallow when she leans forward to press a light kiss to his sternum, and she holds herself there, feeling his muscles loosen into some sort of relaxed slouch.

It’s not so much a good luck as a _you’ll be fine you wonderful idiot_ , but his long exhale let’s her know that he’s understood.

When she finishes buttoning him up, she looks up to find an unbearably soft smile on his face and uncomfortably affectionate look in his eye. It makes her insides twist when he looks at her like that.

“Whatever,” she rolls her eyes, dismissing the uncomfortable feelings. “We can’t keep the step-monster waiting. Saddle up cowb- _oh grow up_ ” Beca slaps a hand to his forehead when Jesse plays the predictable boy and waggles his eyebrows at her phrasing.

“M’Lady,” Jesse gives an obnoxious bow, which she rewards by taking him by the ear and tugging him through the door.

___

  
They get into a big fight the week before sectionals. Big fight. Big. _Huge_.

She tells herself that she was just waiting for the other shoe to drop, that their relationship wasn’t even that great to begin with, that he had tricked her into thinking it was something special. It wasn’t, it couldn’t be if a disagreement could escalate so quickly.

She’s not even sure that they’re still _in_ a relationship. Whatever. She’s fine.

Not that Chloe believed her when they had skyped for the 4th time that week.

Or Amy, who had been there when she and Jesse had gotten into the shouting match in the radio station parking lot.

Or Stacie who had tried to press the matter when it was unprofessionally brought up in a Bella’s practice, after Beca had specifically said to “fucking drop it.”

And maybe they had the right idea, because Beca finds herself a bit weepy at night when she slips a movie into her laptop because she’s essentially holed herself up in her room. The only other person who knew that was Amy, and that was only because Beca had started tearing up while watching The Avengers (for no real reason) and Amy had patted her on the back sympathetically and said: ”I know, providing Chris Hemsworth with clothing was an unusually cruel decision.” Beca hadn’t bothered correcting her.

The thing is, it’s both of their faults. Beca was being typically standoffish and cutting because that was who she was, so forgive her for falling back on old habits. He’d been frustrated with her because he couldn’t understand what was wrong with her, and he was demanding and pushy like he always was, asking more from her than she was willing to give. It erupted after two days of tension, and they hadn’t spoken since. She’d never seen Amy’s eyes go so wide in her life.

He was partially right, but so was she, and after only a day of stewing she had come to recognize that it was probably the healthiest sign of their relationship. They were still learning how to fit each other into their lives, and it was a learning process. She hadn’t realized how much she’d cared about it until he was no longer there.

She puts a lot of effort into their sectionals piece, but an hour before the Bellas have to meet for the bus, Beca is staring at her reflection in her mirror and feeling anything but prepared.

Something is lacking, and it pisses her off that she has somehow come to rely on Jesse and his supportive nature. Son of a bitch.

“Coming,” she yells, when there’s a knock at her door, and Beca adjusts the fit of her jeans before striding over to answer it. Lilly had said that she’d come by on her way from her place.

It is decidedly _not_  Lilly who is darkening her doorstep when she flings the door open, however.

“You’re not Lilly,” she says stupidly, because Jesse was the very last person she pictured coming to her door right now, especially considering their last words to each other.

“Perceptive, Nancy Drew,” he quips, but his face is still a bit tight, and his smile a bit wan when framed by the dark circles under his eyes. So he hadn’t been sleeping. Interesting.

Beca clears her throat and shifts awkwardly on her feet, deciding after a moment to shut the door behind her and force Jesse to take a step back as she takes one forward.

“Fired up?” he asks stiffly, and she watches him when he slides his hands into the pockets of his burgundy blazer.

“For the competition?” she brushes her hair from her face, and shrugs. “I’m not taking performance enhancing drugs if that’s what you mean.”

He laughs quietly, but she can see that it isn’t involuntary, so she can’t help the small smile that breaks across her face.

He finishes in a long exhale and just looks at her. He watches her a bit like a wounded animal, slightly desperate behind all that forced stiffness.

He steps forward hesitantly, but when she stays firmly rooted in place, he reaches a hand forward to trace the path of an errant strand of hair and tucks it behind her ear.

Where she can feel something loosening in her chest, she can feel it lodging in her throat instead.

“Well,” he says after a moment, watching her. “I guess you won’t need to break a leg then huh?”

She rolls her eyes at how bad a joke that one was, but her fists clench with the implication of his statement. And sure enough, Jesse leans down and places a kiss to her temple, lingering only for a few moments, but enough for her to reach out and tangle her fingers in the material of his jacket. She closes her eyes.

It wasn’t quite an apology, but Beca was now sure that as far as their relationship was concerned, they still had plenty of time for those.

___

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was a weird one, I know. You people are so amazing, I really, really appreciate all of your reviews. I’ve had a few people ask me if I would do a long fic, but I don’t really have the confidence to carry a full story right now, but maybe in the future. For now, please enjoy more one-shots and I’ll try to make them longer for you. Please, please review!
> 
> Movie Reference:  
> -The Avengers (2012) dir., Joss Whedon


	10. Major Key

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She wakes up in the morning with a killer headache, a fuzzy recollection of last night, and a post-it note stuck to her forehead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is a bit shorter and lacking in the kissing department, but I will more than make up for it in the next two chapters.
> 
> Disclaimer: as always, I do not own these characters or the movie that they come from. 
> 
> Please excuse any grammatical errors, I will go back and fix them.

**The Bellas win the riff-off and Jesse loses a bet.**

  
  
“I bet you a juice pack that we’ll win.”  
  
“I don’t care.”  
  
“Alright,” Jesse continues, undeterred, “ _all_ of my juice packs.”  
  
Beca snorts. “You seem to think those juice packs are worth an awful lot. Have we been friends long enough that I’m finally seeing your delusional stage?”  
  
Jesse blinks in surprise before a grin spreads that dopey face wide and Beca knows something stupid is going to fall out of that mouth.  
  
“Don’t” she cuts him off,”yes I have admitted that we are friends, so take that precious gift without _any_ commentary.  Which yes,” she says as she hoists a crate of records up towards her chest, “I know how difficult that is for you.”  
  
Jesse lets his mouth fall shut but watches her with a wry expression on his face. You win an inch with this girl only to find out that it’s another 20 to go. He sighs, picks up a few records she’d missed, and follows after her.  
  
“Well then what _do_  you find worthy of a good bet, and no,” he points a finger in her face, suddenly serious, “I’m not going to let that comment about the juice packs slide. We _will_  be discussing your horrible taste in just about everything at a later date.”  
  
She scoffs.  
  
“Keep your nerd to yourself boy wonder. And I told you,” she shoves a David Bowie record in with more force than necessary. “I don’t care about this riff-off, so you’ll just have to bet with yourself. But I’m sure that you’re used to playing with yourself by now.” She smirks and shoves the next record into his chest.  
  
He chokes on a laugh a bit, brow furrowing as he looks from the record to her, that satisfied smile tugging a smug line on her face.  
  
“It’s always better with two people,” he challenges, voice still coloured in something like amusement.  
  
“Like a couple?” she makes sure that her voice is suitably low as she leans in close, “or did you mean a threesome.”  
  
His grin flashes white, but she can see his throat bob as he swallows hard.  
  
“Are we still talking about the same thing?” Jesse asks, a hopeful expression on his face. Beca shuts that down with an eye roll.  
  
She toys with her lip as she considers him, taking in that competitive glint in his eye and open expression. He was like a damn excitable puppy.  
  
“Okay,” she exhales through her nose and brings her arms up to cross over her chest. “I’ll take your bet, but we have to change the stakes. Inedible food colouring and sugar isn’t going to do it for me.”  
  
“Name it.”  
  
“You lose,” she pokes him in the chest, ignoring the way his eyes fall to her hand there. “You lose,” she says again and clears her throat, “and I’ll actually watch one of your dumb movies.”  
  
“No way,” he shakes his head and it’s his turn to poke her (in the shoulder because he wouldn’t have a finger to point with if he went for the boobs). “If I win then you have to go see a movie with me,” he pauses, “at a theatre.”  
  
She narrows her eyes at him, but concedes with a slow head nod.  
  
“And if I lose?” he’s grinning now, looking almost relieved that she’d so easily given in to the whole movie ~~date~~  thing.  
  
“Don’t wet yourself now junior,” she toys with the edge of one of the records, deep in thought. “When _I_ win,” she suddenly smirks , “you have to be at my beck and call.”  
  
“Like your slave?”  
  
“Like my slave,” she confirms.  
  
“Sexually?”  
  
“ _Jesse_.”  
  
“You’re on,” not seeming at all perturbed by her demand, and her face twists in annoyance that it didn’t have the effect she wanted. Idiot, he probably thought she was kidding. Did he not understand that she would do her worst?  
  
He has his hand extended towards her to shake, and she thinks about just leaving him like that. Looking around, she gives a final huff before her hand slides into his own, and she’s gripping it firmly in agreement.  
  
“Just remember that I don’t actually care,” she makes sure to emphasize.  
  
“No, of course not,” he agrees in the most unconvincing manner.  
  
\---  
  
It’s to Jesse and his awestruck expression that she raps the final “we out,” that wins them the riff-off, and by proxy wins Beca the bet. She’s smiling so hard, weirdly excited and proud that she’d just started something _awesome_ , that she and her fellow Bellas were fucking amazing. It was a total high, and not just the whole winning thing. Maybe this acapella business had a little something going for it.  
  
Her face is flushed, and she can’t help laughing when Amy brings all the Bellas in for a weird sort of hug mosh pit that results in Chloe and Cynthia Rose falling over amidst delighted laughter and loud wolf howling (Amy)  
  
“Suck on that evil troll!” Aubrey shouts at Bumper, and Bumper looks a little like he might throw up or possibly self-immolate.  
  
Jesse is waiting for her, still rooted firmly to his spot, hands stuffed in his pocket and a large grin on his face. The other Trebles around him are muttering under their breaths like the sore losers they are.  
  
“Should I be calling you Tupac now?” he laughs as she comes closer, and she’s so keyed up that she laughs along with him.  
  
“Actually,” she punches his shoulder, tilting her face up to meet those dark eyes of his that are still watching her with a lot of amazement. “You may call me your highness, though I do like the sound of _mistress_.”  
  
Jesse chokes back a laugh and extends his hands as if in offering. “You’re right. I lost fair and square my lady,” she wrinkles her nose at him and he cocks his head. “My...lord? Help a guy out here.”  
  
“I’ll take anything but sweetheart, now saddle up cowboy,” she claps her hands together and rubs them with glee. “You’re going to give me a piggy back to the radio station where Luke keeps a stash of beer.”  
  
“What, no he doesn’t” Jesse’s brow furrows. “There’s no way I wouldn’t have found them. _I’m_ the Cinderella here.”  
  
“Did you check behind the Abba? Fourth shelf, two over, hidden between Abba and the Beetlejuice soundtrack.”  
  
Jesse’s jaw drops.  
  
“Come on,” Beca laughs, motioning with her finger for him to turn around. “I’m feeling uncharacteristically good at this moment, and you have a bet to own up to. I have plans for you boy,” Beca’s smile sharpens, “oh do I have plans.”  
  
“I knew that this was going to involve some sort of manual labour but man,” he puffs his cheeks up and exhales as he turns around to give her his back. “I think the power has gone to your head. I mean, damn.”  
  
“Horses are silent,” she bites back, and struggles to get atop him, their height difference never more noticeable than now. “Can you bend a bit,” she asks, hands on his shoulders.  
  
“I’ve created a monster,” he acquiesces, and when she climbs up the length of him, he adjusts his grip so that her legs are locked tightly against his sides. She’s daring enough to wrap her arms around his neck.  
  
“Quick,” Beca breaths against Jesse’s ear, “let’s go before Aubrey notices us and I have to tell her that I’m riding a Treble.”  
  
Jesse stumbles slightly at that, and Beca yelps when they dip forward.  
  
“Jesus Jesse,” she tightens her grip around his neck, her hand falling back the neckline of his shirt and against the warmth of his skin.  
  
“Not the kind of riding she had in mind, I’m sure” Jesse deadpans, adjusts his grip on her knees and starts walking. “Or me now,” he mutters under his breath.  
  
Beca pinches him at the collarbone and settles in against him. She likes the hard lines of muscle and sinew and the very pleasant scent of boy. She won okay, she can enjoy this.  
  
Beca catches Amy’s eye on their way out, and gives a casual wave to which Amy thumbs up.  
  
“Oy, where’s my steed?” Amy calls out to the other Trebles, narrowing in on Bumper who is now totally in Aubrey’s face. “Bumper, come along now boy, it’s time for us to ride like the wind. Stop playing around with the other animals.”  
  
\---

  
They totally get drunk. Or well, Beca gets drunk, but Jesse’s pretty sure that he’s had only one, and this drunk feeling has nothing to do with alcohol. Jesse is admittedly surprised because Beca seems like the one who manages her alcohol well and passes judgement to anyone else who is shit faced, but she must be having a better night than he thought.  
  
She orders him to piggy-back her home as well, although it takes them nearly 20 minutes to try and get her back up on him. Twice she nearly face plants. Jesse is fortunate enough to catch her fall with his own poor body.  
  
Luke’s beers were not so lucky however, but Jesse sure hopes that Luke will accept their nice hand written post-it note informing him that Lady Gaga fans had raided the station and held both he and Beca up at stiletto point.  
  
Totally legit.  
  
Beca doesn’t say much on the way to her dorm, and it isn’t until Jesse nearly collapses under the sudden dead weight that is Beca Mitchell that he realizes she’s fallen asleep  
  
“Shit,” he curses, but manages to catch himself against the door of her dorm without knocking her head into the hard brick.  
  
She’s utterly boneless against him.  
  
He leans his forehead against the brick wall, the intention to give himself a minute to reorient himself, but he’s letting the seconds tick by with every breath that rustles against the back of his neck. Jesse is only now recognizing the pressure of her lips against the skin there, and he heaves a slow breath.  
  
His hands are still awkwardly tucked under her kneecaps, and his shoulders are aching slightly, but he doesn’t find that he really cares.  
  
“Alright Bec,” he takes another breath, balancing the two of them against the wall as he manages to extract one hand from her leg and twist the doorknob open. “Almost home and back with your very best friend Kimmy Jin.”  
  
She murmurs something against his neck that sounded a lot like “nerd,” but also very well could have been nonsensical babbling.  
  
“That’s right,” Jesse grins and hoists her higher on his back. “You’ve had a _very_ big night, champ.”  
  
Beca just groans and tightens her grip around his shoulders. She’s totally out when Jesse finally delivers her to her door, Kimmy Jin glaring daggers at the pair and giving Jesse no help with the unconscious Bella. Beca doesn’t make a sound when Jesse clumsily drops her onto the bed, not even when she glances her forehead off of the bed post.  
  
She may have regained a bit of consciousness at some point though, because she seems to remember a worried Jesse hovering over her face, his lips so very close to hers as he presses gentle fingers to her growing bruise. She’s definitely not awake when he tucks her in with a sigh, lingering for a moment to whispers a “good night” before he leaves.  
  
She wakes up in the morning with a killer headache, a fuzzy recollection of last night, and a post-it note stuck to her forehead.  
  
“..the hell?” she grumbles, wincing through the rays of sunlight that managed to come through the slots in her blinds.  
  
She blinks blearily at the yellow square, words only coming into focus after a few minutes of staring.  
  
 _I O U one full day of servitude._  
 _Rest up my queen._  
 _Neigh_  
 _-J_  
  
She crumples the post-it in her fist and rolls her eyes, rolling back into a fetal position against her mound of blankets and pillows. She falls back asleep with the note still stuffed in her right hand, and a small smile on her face.    
  
“Idiot,” she sighs into her pillow.  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys really are amazing, thank you so much for each and every single review. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate them, and please keep sharing your comments with me! I don’t care if you’ve reviewed before, it’s good to hear what you’re thinking, or what you’d like to see. Please!
> 
> Next chapter will have more "could-have-been" scenes. And kissing. 
> 
>  
> 
> Movie references  
> -Beetlejuice (1988), dir., Tim Burton


	11. Minor Key

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Without preamble she takes his chin in her hand and presses her lips to his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own these characters or the movie in which they came from.
> 
> Another "could have been" scene. Not too pleased with the way it turned out, but please have a read!

**2\. Beca doesn’t turn away**  
  
She can feel him looking at her.  
  
The laid-back atmosphere is completely drained from the room in those few seconds, and Beca knows that no matter how hard she chooses to stare at Judd Nelson instead of Jesse, it won’t rewind this whole situation to 5 seconds ago when it was just the two of them joking around.  
  
Or maybe she should rewind it back to 15 minutes ago when she made the stupid decision of letting him in the room in the first place.  
  
Or a month ago when she even started to begrudgingly hang out with him.  
  
Let’s be real, she’d go back to the summer and never come to this damn University in the first place.  
  
Beca can see Jesse’s reflection slightly in the glass of the laptop and she heaves a small internal sigh. He was sweet right? And competitive, and dorky, and he’d called her music amazing.  
  
This wasn’t going to go away, she could very well see how interested he was in her, and how much he was trying to reign it in in favour of their friendship. She could nip this in the bud, take control of the situation and then they could both just go back to being friends. And yes, she could admit that she liked having him around. She liked his one-liners and energetic personality, even if it gave her a headache more often than not.  
  
She turns her head to meet his stare, finding those kind brown eyes unwavering as they take her in. When he swallows reflexively, Beca turns away and snaps the laptop shut.    
  
She makes her decision.  
  
The sound of the laptop closing breaks some sort of spell and she can hear Jesse’s long exhale as he turns away from her, shifting back slightly to regain some composure.  
  
“So what did you think,” he clears his throat, and she can hear the effort he puts into his tone to keep things casual. Beca bites down on the inside of her cheek.  
  
Ignoring him, she takes the laptop in her one hand and sets it on the floor in front of the bed, torso stretching over her crossed legs.  Using the same momentum, Beca suddenly swings back up and around, uncrossing her legs so that she’s towering over him in a kneel.  
  
“Er,” he narrows his eyes like he’s missing something. Or like she’s going to attack him. “Beca?”  
  
Without preamble she takes his chin in her hand and presses her lips to his.  
  
He actually gasps against her mouth.  
  
It’s only a press of lips, chaste if not for the fact that she’s leaning over top of him, forcing him back slightly from the momentum of her action. He has one hand just flexing uselessly in the air, and she can still taste the surprise on his lips as he freezes against her. She feels a bit vindicated.  
  
This here? It’s nothing.  
  
She knows the second he responds that she made a huge mistake, however.  
  
He’s slow to react, so slow that she almost startles when his one hand suddenly comes up to cup her jaw in his palm. The other hand slowly tangles itself in her hair, and he uses his grip on her as leverage to tilt her chin down, gently taking control of the kiss. She means to pull back when the sensory overload becomes more than she anticipated from just a small kiss, but her eyes have slid shut on their own accord, and she can’t--  
  
She expected hesitance, maybe even awkward fumbling, but she’s thrown by the confidence in which he parts his mouth against hers and takes her bottom lip between his.  
  
He kisses her a bit urgently, like it’s his one opportunity and he can’t waste a second, but all Beca really registers is that as urgent as it feels, it’s going oh so slow.  
  
His mouth is hot as it opens up underneath her own, languidly swiping his tongue along the seam of her lips. It’s only after Beca shifts to straddle his lap that she realizes she’s been kneeling awkwardly over him since the kiss first started.    
  
His one hand moves to the dip of her waist, and Beca takes the opportunity to lower the rest of her weight against him, her legs stretching uncomfortably to bracket his hips.  
  
He’s panting against her when they part for air, and she can’t see his eyes between her mess of hair, doesn’t want to see his eyes, so she steals forward to capture his lips again before he can say anything to ruin this.  
  
This time she uses her tongue.  
  
The groan that comes from Jesse is enough to make her smile against him a little triumphantly, and she bites down on the plump flesh of his bottom lip.  
  
She is not prepared when he suddenly shifts, one hand still pressed against her lower back as he tilts her backwards and follows her momentum with a punishing press of his lips.  
  
She let’s out an embarrassing yelp that’s muffled by the warm weight of him as he pins her to her own bed with his hips. Her breath catches when he starts to lean forward and the pressure against her pelvis turns into a grind.  Her mouth falls open into a silent moan.  
  
He’s looking at her then, so earnestly that she can feel her common sense stirring the panic up within her again.  Their eyes are locked onto each other, Beca’s heart thundering in her chest when he slowly trails his other hand down her thigh before lifting it high against his hip. He doesn’t break his gaze once. The new position pushes her pelvis right against his groin and when she bucks reflexively beneath him, they both groan.  
  
“Beca,” Jesse breathes, and his head falls to her shoulder.  
  
It’s too much, all of it, and yet Beca can’t help but urge him onwards, her fingers clamping down on the nape of his neck to bring his mouth back to hers. She’s a bit dizzy and she wonders if she even has any condoms around. They gave them like a whole box in some stupid freshmen orientation didn’t they?  
  
Woah, wait a second Beca--  
  
The door suddenly opens with a flash of light, and Beca recoils as it meets her eyes. Kimmy Jin is standing there, hand on the doorknob, her two friends blinking back at them from behind her shoulder.  
  
“The white girl has returned,” Kimmy Jin says, absolutely no reaction to the scene that she has come upon, and Kimmy’s friends are staring back at Beca and Jesse expectantly as if it’s only natural for them to stop their almost boning to accommodate them.  
  
Oh God. Oh _God_.  
  
“Off, _off,_ ” Beca hisses to Jesse, and he fumbles a bit when he scrambles off of her, sluggish in his movements like his brain isn’t connecting with his muscles. He’s staring at her, not even acknowledging the source of their interruption at all. His eyes are solely on her.  
  
She meets them for half a second before her gaze skitters away and she looks to the floor as she adjusts her shirt which has been rucked up nearly to her chest. Damn.  
  
Nothing is said for a few moments, and it’s because of the silence that Beca can hear Jesse’s long sigh, the bed creaking as he pushes himself off of it and to his feet.  
  
“Well I guess that’s my cue,” he clears his throat, his eyes swinging from Kimmy Jin back to Beca, and she raises her head enough to meet his eyes before wiping all emotion from her face.  
  
His smile tightens infinitesimally, and she watches his fist clench as he steps around her roommate and her roommate’s friends. “I’ll see you later Beca,” he offers, but his voice is a bit hollow, and she can feel his disappointment without him even needing to voice it.  
  
Fuck, her eyes slide close.  
  
“Our room is not a harem _Beca,_ ” Kimmy Jin glares, and she and her friends enter anyways despite Beca’s obvious distress.  
  
Fuck, Beca covers her face in her hands and falls back into her bed, letting the comforter swallow her pathetic ass whole.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for your reviews. They really are so wonderful and one day I will sit down and respond to them individually like you all deserve. I'm so sorry that I haven't done so already It means a lot to me. 
> 
> As a heads up, yes I will be going a three-shot and I think a longer fic or I'll just make the three-shot quite long. It's going to be an AU futurefic, with the idea that Beca and Jesse never really met or interacted during University and they both find themselves in California trying to follow their dreams and their paths cross in a big way. That fic will come in a little bit, I'm still pretty busy with work, so I hope that you'll be satisfied with these one-shots for the time being!
> 
> As always please review, and follow my tumblr if you'd like! I want to hear from you!
> 
> Movie Reference
> 
> -The Breakfast Club (1985), dir., John Hughes
> 
> [1] Pitch Perfect (2012), dir., Jason Moore


	12. Sustain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is at that moment, her hand on her door knob and Jesse singing an over the top rendition of Grease in the hallway, that she realizes that she and Jesse have most certainly become friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Big apology for the long wait until an update. I've been a bit busy with my job, but I promise that I will make it up to you. The long fic is underway and the first few chapters should be posted within the next few weeks. As for this collection of one-shots...this one is a bit weird, and it eventually relates back to the "I love you" one-shot where Beca told Jesse with the assistance of Star Wars. It's not much but I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> I also have a part 2 of Minor Key that will be up in a bit, an AU continuation of what should have happened with the Breakfast Club scene.
> 
> Please excuse any grammatical errors I will be revisiting every chapter to edit them.

She figures out that she can stand to be around him a week after the initiation kegger.

She doesn't know  _why_  exactly, because it should be clear to everyone he comes in contact with that Jesse is a giant idiot. He's got that charming, effusive grin thing going for him, but even a cute face and winning personality can't detract from rampant  _nerdiness_.

Half the time he was talking to himself, really. And it wasn't like she didn't get the constant movie references (please, pop culture doesn't require the actual viewing or listening of anything to understand), but she think he might not understand that she doesn't find him funny, nor does she really want to talk to him. Not when he asks her a question containing any quotes. Not when he's totally in her personal space. And definitely not in the morning.

She doesn't do the whole socializing thing, but he seems determined to turn that around for her, even if that means having one-sided conversations so there's the appearance of some sort of socializing. It seems to keep him happy and occupied, so she just let's him. What he doesn't realize is that half the time she has earphones in her ears.

He's gregarious, energetic, pushy, and far too clever for his own good. Also, he smiles too much. What the hell was up with that?

And yet, there was some point between their first meeting and their third week of interning at the radio station, that she found that none of these things _really_ mattered to her. She still found him more annoying than charming (as he liked to believe he was), but they had somehow established this rapport between the two of them. Being around him had become comfortable, calming, and bearable.

Whatever.

 

_______________

 

Headphones clasped snuggly to her ears, Beca barely hears the phone ring when he calls.

"Ya," she sighs when she answers, thinking it's her Father or maybe the Dean asking her to please remove her terrible person from this pristine learning institution. She doesn't really check her caller ID.

"The believability factor of John Travolta in high school, what are your thoughts," Jesse's voice come out loud and clear through the small device.

Beca pauses, brow furrowing. "Isn't he like 60? Is he getting his GED or something?"

"Not  _now_  Beca," Jesse exhales in mild exasperation, and Beca crosses her free arm under her chest. "In  _Grease_."

"You know that I don't watch films," she settles back into her pillows. "Also, I don't care."

"This is  _Grease_  though Beca, this isn't like other films. It's a cultural staple that I would bet my amazing plaid collection you've at least seen a photo of.  _Or_ " he seems to like the new direction his thoughts have taken because she can hear the smile in his voice. "Were inspired by enough to purchase a pair of leather pants."

"Why is this conversation happening?" she asks at a deadpan.

She can hear Jesse chuckle but it sounds slightly muffled. "Okay so you're a total cultural alien. You know the songs, I  _know_ that you know the songs."

Beca rolls her eyes but hesitates enough that he has his answer. "I may have heard a song or two."

"Tell me about it _stud_ ," his voice goes all breathy.

Beca can't stop the involuntary snort of laughter that escapes her mouth.

"Okay," Jesse chuckles, and she can hear how pleased he is. "So I'll add  _Grease_ to your movication list, but I know that you're full of shit on the song front. Beca Mitchell one day," he pauses and she gets the impression that he's pointing at the phone like he's pointing at her in warning ,"one day you will be the Sandy to my much more age appropriate Danny."

"Is this before or after my dead body has grown totally cold?" she smirks.

"Preferably before, but I know with you, " he sighs," I have to take what I can get."

She bites her lip at that, and tugs at her headphones that have cushioned against her throat. "Was this the only reason for your call?" she asks, clearing her throat. She realizes that she's gotten pretty comfortable against her pillows and comforter, and that pisses her off.

"Well I had to say something to fill up the time before I got there," he scoffs.

_What_. "What?" her brow furrows.

There's a knock at the door suddenly, and Beca's eyes shoot to the door, surprise colouring her features.

"Come along now Sandy," Jesse's voice is muffled through the door. "You're hungry and so am I, street vendor hotdogs await us."

Beca blinks stupidly at the door for another moment before she snaps her phone shut and slides off the bed. She shucks off her headphones, her hand reaching out to grab her leather jacket from the back of her chair.

She can hear Jesse humming "Beauty School Drop-Out" from beyond her door, and Beca heaves a long sigh.

It is at that moment, her hand on her door knob and Jesse singing an over the top rendition of  _Grease_  in the hallway, that she realizes that she and Jesse have most certainly become friends.

 

______________

 

She discovers that she totally wants to jump his bones when he's performing on stage and her lower belly clenches so hard she actually has to steady herself against the buffet table.

Jesse and the other Trebles are doing a gig at some school Arts night, showcasing Barden's artistic talents. The Bellas had been invited but not invited to perform, and that had Aubrey practically breathing fire in her tight yellow dress and heels.

Beca didn't really give a shit. She had been ordered to come, and there was the promise of free food so she was indifferent to who had been asked to showcase "aca-excellenc"e as Aubrey had called it. Or she had been until the Trebles were up there and Jesse was showing off more than just an excellent voice.

Holy shit, had he always been this hot?

He was always good looking, but as far as Beca had been concerned he was like a good looking lamp or table setting, no sexual feelings involved in this acknowledgement in the slightest.

But there was something in the way his mouth twisted that she hadn't seen before, or maybe just hadn't appreciated. And my god those black slacks fit snugly across his hips.

"Save room for dessert," Amy's voice suddenly whispers in her ear, and Beca shoots the other girl a scowl.

He is the dessert Amy.

Oh ew, what the hell was wrong with her.

His hand comes around over his chest, palm flat against the muscle there and she watches him push his hand down towards his hips, the move calling attention to his pelvis as his fingers tapped against his belt.

She can picture it, she striding forward through the crowd, pushing herself up onto the makeshift stage without a single thought to the fact that she was interrupting the Treble performance. She would get shocked and perhaps angry looks, but from Jesse she would get adorable confusion and it would only incite her lust more. She would grasp that button up shirt between her two small hands and _tear_ , exposing that fantastic chest for all the crowd to see.

She would use the ripped shirt to tug him forward, her tongue licking a strip along the skin of his pectorals, trailing up towards that frantically beating pulse. His deep voice would catch in a strangled gasp when she'd use her teeth against his neck, blowing cold air to soothe the sting. When her mouth was latched firmly to that hollow of his throat she would trail her fingers along the line of hair at his abdomen, dipping her hand past the waistband of his pants, gripping-

"Fuck," she whispers hoarsely, drawing herself from her fantasies in time to notice that the performance was in fact done, and Bumper was drawing the applause of the crowd with his overdone fist pumping.

She could feel the flush on her face, and she only gripped the drink in her hands harder as she struggled to regain some composure.

"Beca," Jesse's voice chirps from just to her right, and she swallows hard at the timbre of his voice. "Enjoy the shimmy? I threw it in for you."

He's teasing her and it seems so inappropriate considering the fact that she was fantasizing about taking him on stage just a few moments before.

She's staring at the skin of his neck where he forgot to button his shirt and she feels the situation spinning slightly out of control. She could step forward right now, crush his lips to hers without any preamble, mold that delicious body to hers, and make him bend her over the buffet table.

"Ya," she bites down hard on her lip, "I have to not be here right now." She checks that she has her purse on her, and without meeting his eyes she shoves her drink in his hand.

"Make good choices," she flashes a tight smile and bails out of that room like she's never bailed before.

She has some pretty detailed dreams later that night.

 

__________

 

When she figures out that she's in love with him she doesn't speak to him for a whole week.

It's two years into their relationship, one that Beca never thought would get past the 3 month mark, let alone last well into her degree. There's a bit of finality in her thoughts when she ever let's herself think about their relationship rather than just _be_ in it. It's a depth that she doesn't revisit often, and until the very moment she acknowledged that her feelings for this boy were more than affection and friendship, well they were just girly thoughts that dipped into the fantastical really.

It doesn't hit her like a lightning bolt, not suddenly, not even like a great revelation.

They're sitting in the cold plastic auditorium seats during a break in her Bella practice (Jesse was only permitted to attend those during lunch or water breaks because he was still the competition. Or the enemy, as Amy liked to remind him.) He had brought her fajitas from their favourite Mexican place, and they're sharing the earphones from his ipod as they sit in relative silence, eating.

The powerful violin of Bernard Hermann's  _Citizen Kane_ score comes on, and Jesse reaches down for his ipod, still munching away at his wrap. He casually scrolls through his ipod list and Hermann's powerful strings are replaced by the strong drum beats of a Calvin Harris song, one of her favourites. He sets the ipod back down without even looking at her, content in his food.

She looks over at him and just thinks, I love this nerd.

Its such a natural train of thought that she doesn't even realize the weight of it for a few moments, but when it registers she's already got a bit of fajita in her mouth and she nearly chokes.

What. The. Fuck.

He changed a song for her and now she suddenly can't swallow. He just tapped on his damn ipod and suddenly there are Ifeelings/i everywhere. He knew she wasn't a big fan of the instrumental movie scores he loves so much, and now suddenly she's in love with him.

No, not suddenly she thinks as she just stares at him, there is no part of her that doesn't feel like such an admittance wasn't anything over than perfectly right.

Oh my god.

He's obliviously chomping away at that food, looking at something that must have been amusing to him because his dimples are starting to deepen and she can see the smile forming before it's even a flash of white teeth. The amount of affection that swells in her stupid stomach at the sight of those dimples is so ridiculous that Beca has to shut it down. Everything. It must be destroyed.

"I have to go," she says, standing abruptly.

Jesse swallows, brow furrowing at her in confusion. "Is the President calling?" he teases, but he's got his eyebrow cocked.

She bites down hard on her lip because she can't really stop the second swell of feelings that comes from his stupid remarks, and it makes her fly into a panic.

"Shut up," she replies, lamely, and shoves her half eaten food into his chest. She gathers her coat up, completely ignoring his now alarmed expression.

"Beca," he tries to interrupt, "is everything okay?  _Beca_."

"It's fine," she clears her throat and pushes her hair back from her face. "I just need to go do something so I'll see you later ok?"

He looks unsure, no he looks down right worried, and it makes her all the more flustered.

"Okay?" he licks his lips, eyes shooting to the Bellas who are assembling by the white board, the lunch break already over. "What about your practice, _hey_ " he's standing up now, watching her take off down the aisle at an alarming speed. "Beca what's going on?"

She pauses, the concern in his voice causing her to turn back to him, her hand already wrapped tightly around the stair railing.

"Was the fajita that bad?" he tries to joke, but it comes out flat. He's worried.

She stares at him and swallows hard. "It was fine," she says finally, hiding her face in the curtain of her hair as she turns back towards the steps. "I just need to go."

"Beca!" Jesse calls out after her.

"Oi where's the fire," Amy comments as Beca hits the last stair and makes an aburpt left turn towards the door. "Have you received your monthly gift early?" Amy continues and by now all the Bellas are watching Beca leave in absolute puzzlement. They still had another hour of practice left.

"I just have to take care of something," Beca smiles tightly and is off again at the turn of her heel.

"Pity that shit doesn't have a return policy," Amy continues conversationally to Jessica, "a bleeding vagina is like a very ugly hand knitted sweater. It should come with a gift receipt."

Jesse doesn't follow after her, but when she doesn't answer his texts or pick up his calls, he's at her door almost every day, asking what the hell he'd done wrong. He's not too good at the giving her space thing, though lord knows he's gotten pretty good practice at it. She gives him some excuse about her family and a minor internal freak-out and he seems to accept it, though he also seems to walk on eggshells for the next few weeks.

She scared him, like she was going to end things with nothing but a half eaten fajita and an "I'll see you later." He has no idea how close she came to doing exactly that.

It takes her awhile to come to terms with these feelings, and even then she doesn't say anything until a few months later when she's curled against his side and Princess Leia is telling Han Solo that she loves him through the shitty speakers of Jesse's laptop.

She likes to think that Jesse finally gets what happened all those months ago when she's parroting Carrie Fischer's sentiments and holding his stunned gaze with her own unwavering one. Movication night suddenly turns into the best sex they've ever had and it feels a little bit like forever when he's mouthing "I love you" into her skin, over and over again like he'll never get tired of saying it.

It's too much, it's always too much with Jesse, but she has somehow reached a place where that's okay. She's not sure when annoyingly bearable turned into I love yous, but she's not sure that she cares either.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Movie References:
> 
> \- Grease (1978), dir., Randal Kleiser
> 
> -Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980), dir., Irvin Kershner
> 
> -Citizen Kane (1941) dir., Orson Welles


	13. Soundboard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Now," she sighs into his mouth, eyes stern. "If you don't put your hands back where they were and touch me, I'm going to throw your entire movie collection into a dumpster and burn it to the ground."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yes, I haven't updated these one-shots in well over a month. I am so very sorry for that! It's been a very busy December for me, but I already have 5 more one-shots lined up for this fic so I will devote time to churning them out for you. And yes, that does include a part II of Minor Key (the one where they totally make out after watching the breakfast club). I hope that you enjoyed this small one, and that you're enjoying my AU fic. PLEASE. Please review. I can't thank you all enough for all your support, but I really like to hear from you guys. Even if it's just a kick in the ass to keep things going!

"He poured gin in her glass instead of the tea he was supposed to," Jesse mumbles against her collarbone, teeth just grazing the fine slope of the bone.

"Is that right?" Beca responds, amused as she let's her boyfriend trail his lips across her skin.

"Didn't even tell Hattie McDaniel that he was going to do it," he presses a kiss to the hollow where her neck meets her sternum, "I think it's safe to say that she was surprised."

"He sounds like a dick."

"Clark Gable?" she can hear outrage in Jesse's voice, and she swats at him when he gives a punishing nip to the space just between her breasts. "How  _dare_  you."

She chuckles as he shifts over her, moving himself so that he fits more easily between the cradle of her hips. Jesse lifts his head to meet her eyes, a smirk tugging at the side of that glorious mouth.

"I'm sorry, " she offers, raising her hands up to tangle in the bars of their headboard, "please continue giving me pointless trivia about  _Gone With the Wind_."

Jesse chuckles, his breath hot against her skin, and Beca digs her teeth into her lips to control the goosebumps that break out across her breasts.

"This is all part of your movication Beca," he warns, and she holds back the sigh when his lips finally make their way over the fabric of her bra.

"Is fondling me part of it as well?" she can't help herself, and she jerks when Jesse pinches her in the side. "Hey! Not cool nerd."

"Shh," he admonishes, and he's looking up at her with those big brown eyes, adoration clear in the flecks of gold. It's hard to deny the boy you love anything when he's looking at you like that, especially when he's bracing himself with those strong arms on opposite side of your hipbones, his stomach a comfortable weight against your pelvis.

Beca rolls her eyes because she can.

She didn't ask for the history lesson. She'd done her duty and sat through the full four hours of  _Gone With the Wind_ , listening to Jesse lament about the sheer beauty of the score, even putting up with his very obvious boner for Clark Gable, the leading man. She was surprised that he hadn't been drooling over Vivien Leigh, but then again, she'd actually been a bit absorbed in this one, so she hadn't really been paying attention.

Of course she'd made the mistake of asking him about the film's production, an innocent question that she really should have known not to ask, because there was never going to be a short or easy answer when it came to anything cinema related. He'd begun explaining it all to her, his lips pressed against her temple before moving down to the line of her jaw. Soon this movication also became a bit of foreplay.

"The scene where Rhett carries Scarlett upstairs to ravish her," his hands grip her hips more tightly, and it's not her imagination that Jesse has moved himself further down her body, making sure to press himself as tightly to her skin as possible. "They had it done in just a few takes, but Fleming decided that he was going to play a little joke on Gable."

Beca's mouth falls open slightly as Jesse's teeth catch at the fabric of her bra, her nipples tightening at the pressure there. She tightens her grip on the headboard and makes sure to press up and against him in encouragement.

Too much encouragement, because she catches the line of his erection with her pelvis, and Jesse immediately stills.

"Beca," he grunts, pressing his forehead to her chest, and the grip he has on her waist is tight enough to bruise. She hisses when he pins her more heavily to the bed with his hips, stopping all further movement.  _Not yet_ , he seems to say with his body.  _Fuck yes_ , she wants to say with hers.

He doesn't move to speak again or even to continue his happy little trail down her body, so Beca lets her grip slacken, and her body fall deeper into the mattress. She gives a frustrated sigh.

"And?"

Jesse flashes a grin up at her annoyed expression. "So he told Gable to do it again," he punctuates the statement with a kiss to her belly. "And again," he drags his lips down over her navel, "and again." Beca grits her teeth when Jesse's tongue presses against the jut of her hipbone.

"It's a million steps and Gable just scooped Vivien up each and every single time. No complaints."

"Well he does have those awesome shoulders," she says, eyes sliding shut as he pays particular attention to the skin where the fabric of her panties end. His hands have moved lower, and those clever fingers are pressing into the inside of her thigh. "Looks like he could cart a girl around for hours."

Jesse snorts and she can picture the funny little furrow he gets when she comments on the musculature of any other guy.

"What, you think that you could do it?" Beca's laugh is musical, "you totally would have dropped her flat on her ass."

Jesse stops. " _Aca-scuse me_? I could totally caveman any girl up a flight of stairs."

Beca's eyes slide open, moreso in annoyance that he had stopped touching her.

"Maybe with a rope and pulley."

"Hey," Jesse's hands have fallen off of her legs entirely and he's pushed himself up so that he can look at her more sternly. "I am really strong. You are totally dating the Hulk right here."

Beca screws her face up, unimpressed. "I don't do the whole green thing, and I never said that you weren't strong. Calm your tits."

"You said that I'd  _drop_  you if I tried to carry you up a flight of stairs."

"I don't think my name was every mentioned," she says loftily. He gives her a look.

"Jesse," she sighs, bringing her hand down so that it tangles in the auburn curls of his stupid head. "I believe that you can caveman any girl up a flight of stairs. But Clark Gable was built like a linebacker babe."

Jesse seems to accept this explanation, though she suspects that he's just taking advantage of the fact that she's essentially massaging his head. Her fingers card through the thick locks, and he heaves a contented sigh.

"Besides, you didn't think I was in this for your wit and charm did you?" she cocks an eyebrow and grins with satisfaction as her hand trails down to curl around the bicep of his right arm.

Now Jesse looks smug.

"I thought it was for my movie star good looks," he quips, satisfied and back to twinkling those big brown eyes.

"This mug?" she moves her other hand around the back of his neck and tugs him back up towards her face. "Don't be stupid," she presses her lips to his, tongue sweep against the plump flesh of his lower lip.

Jesse is kneeling over her now and his one hand wraps around the grip she has on the headboard. Their fingers tangle.

"Now," she sighs into his mouth, eyes stern. "If you don't put your hands back where they were and  _touch_  me, I'm going to throw your entire movie collection into a dumpster and burn it to the ground."

"That seems a bit extreme," he says, but his eyes are crinkling at the corners and he's got that brilliant smile on his face as he settles his weight against her again.

_Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn_ ,  pops up in her head, and it's so perfectly a Jesse response that she has to swallow it down hard. He would enjoy that too much. No.

"Don't tell me that I have to do everything myself," she breaths against his lips, and smirks when his pupils dilate at the thought of her touching herself. Boys.

"Your independent streak is one your very best qualities," he says quite pompously, and narrowly avoids getting smacked in the head for his efforts. He's laughing now, his lips pressing sloppy kisses to the hollow of her throat as she tries to buck him off of her half-heartedly.

"Your jokes are your very worst," she retorts, but doesn't fight the smile when his lips press against hers and his fingers finally find their way back to the swell of her hips. Distantly, in the back of her mind, the theme from  _Gone With the Wind_  swells to a triumphant crescendo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Movie References:
> 
> Gone With the Wind (1939), dir., Victor Fleming


	14. Minor Key II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fuck, he thinks again, rubbing at his eyes as he drops down onto his bed.
> 
> Yes, his mind responds, you almost did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know. You don't have to say it, I know. It has been a very long time, and I promised you several of these one-shots because I do have them lined up and ready to post. I'm sorry, real life has taken a precedent lately, but please don't think that I have abandoned this or my AU fic. In fact, for those reading MFTMP, I have 10 pages of the next chapter done, and I'm planning to write about 5-10 more, so you should see it either this week or the beginning of next. I will also have another Source Music update done between that, as it is written and just needs fixing. Please forgive me. I appreciate everyone who has sent me messages at tumblr, especially the people who were being so encouraging. Anyways, here is the next update which is a continuation of Minor Key, though probably with less fluff than you all hoped. Sorry, I'm trying to be as realistic as possible! More fluff in the future.

It surprises him, how slowly he makes the trek back to his own room. There's just something about being basically dismissed by the girl you've been obsessed with since the first day of the semester that really pulls your center of gravity just  _down_. The fact that the reason for the dismissal was also the reason for his very obvious erection...well.

Jesse let's his head hit the door when he finally fumbles his way into his room.  _Fuck_ , he thinks, banging his forehead against the wood. "Fuck," he sighs aloud, and presses harder against the door so that his nose flattens and there's a punishing twinge of pain behind his eyes.

What the fuck had he been thinking? Well, (his laughter is hoarse and he glares accusingly at the tent in his pants) it was very obvious what he had been thinking. Now he had probably destroyed his relationship with Beca because his dick couldn't be cool for just 10 seconds.

He can feel her still, feel the line of her lips when she pressed them eagerly against his own. He swallows hard at the phantom memory, eyes sliding shut as he heaves a breath. It's the weight though, the pressure of her thighs on both sides of his hips as she had brought his pelvis closer to his own, her mouth falling open as he'd pressed his fingers against the underside of her breast. Fuck, he thinks again, rubbing at his eyes as he drops down onto his bed.

Yes, his mind responds, you almost did.

"Everyone's a comedian," he groans, and crosses his arms over his eyes so that he can't even see the light of the moon through the open window.

Panic has made the lining of his stomach feel absolutely raw. It's a very real fear, he thinks, that for how long it's taken for Beca to even let him in a little bit, it's all been discarded with one press of her lips to his. He doesn't regret it, can't regret it when it's something he's thought about nearly every day since she'd flashed that unimpressed glare his way. He could have survived with never knowing the sound she made when his teeth scraped against the underside of her jaw, but he's not sure that he handle her not speaking to him anymore.

He's fucked up, but you know what? So has she.

Jesse's mouth tightens as the memory of his exit flashes in his mind. She could barely even look at him, and why? Maybe she regretted it (she obviously did), but as far as he could remember she had been the one that had swung her leg over his and kissed him first. Was it a game? Had she been playing with him?

He groans again, this time in frustration, and ignores the shaky feeling that's still ripping at his insides. Fuck.

He falls asleep in his jeans with the taste of her still on his mouth.

 

* * *

 

He doesn't bother texting her the next day, he knows she won't answer. He can't; however, exactly avoid seeing her at the radio station.

She hasn't looked at him once since he'd slammed his knee into the sorting cart on his way into the room and her head had snapped up at the sound. Of course, he heard Luke's condescending snort all the way from the radio booth. Prick.

"Beca," he tries, "Beca we need to—"

"Late again," the accented voice carries, and Jesse huffs a long exasperated sigh at Luke's interruption. "I thought I warned you the first 5 times."

"You did, I just thought I'd go for lucky number 6. Even number."

Luke stares back at him blankly, unamused.

"Take the crates over there," Luke gestures, pointing to about 7 or 8 boxes of unsorted heaven. "And I want a cheeseburger this time."

"Got it," Jesse thins his lip, and Luke brushes past him to disappear through the door of the radio station. With the echo of the door ringing in the cavernous room, Jesse turns to look at Beca who is studiously avoiding his gaze.

She's alphabetizing the records in her crate, hardly a task that involves such single-minded focus, but she leaves Jesse to simply watch her. By the overdone air of indifference, Jesse knows that any further attempt to get her attention will be met with more silence. His mood darkens.

"Beca," he makes the attempt anyways, feeling his throat tighten as he does. "We need to talk."

"No," she sighs, twisting her face up into that mocking smile he sometimes sees her flash Aubrey's way, and yet she still won't make eye contact with him. "We don't."

And there it is.

He likes her, there's no more obvious truth in Jesse's life than that one; which is why it feels a little like a punch in the gut realizing that she's probably never going to accept the fact that he cares about her. Returning feelings is one thing, but straight up pushing him away is another. He wonders if she even knows how to accept the kind of friendship that sticks around for more than just a few sarcastic quips and the occasional vapid chat. If what happened was a mistake, or a game, or—he's not hers to jerk around.

"Fine," his humourless laugh comes out achy and hollow, and he backs away from her. He starts for the door.

"Wait," he likes to think that he can hear the furrow of her brow in her voice. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To eat Luke's cheeseburger," doesn't come out quite as flat as he'd wanted, but it's flat enough for her to suddenly abandon her records.

"You're not still hung up on that ab thing," she snorts quietly and he turns around just in time to catch her roll her eyes skyward. "Mature."

He stares at her in disbelief.

"So empty jokes make your list of okay talking points huh?" he scoffs.

"Jesse."

"No," he shakes his head, "what was it? Was it the whole dry hump on your Ikea bed spread that makes this conversation so taboo? Or was being caught with me just too embarrassing for you to handle."

He watches her colour, a fierce red along the smooth column of her neck. She's angry.

"Real nice," she snaps. "Did you want to bring up you groping my tits too?"

"Are you  _kidding_  me," he splutters, eyebrows drawn dangerously low. "I'll tell you what was really nice, making out with the girl you've been crushing on and then watching her ignore you afterwards. Like you were a mistake. A real nice fuck you."

Her eyes narrow and she crosses her arm over her chest. "7 minutes in heaven and you have some claim on me? I don't owe you anything Jesse," she says, quietly threatening.

Holy shit, she isn't hearing any of this.

"Shut up Beca," he runs a hand through his hair. "Just shut up. How do you do this—" he stops and heaves a large breath like he's trying to regain control of this situation. She dumbfounds him. "You kissed  _me_. You do whatever you like without any regard for anyone else's feelings. Like you always do."

Beca is glaring at him now, suddenly in his face. "What the fuck, you think you know me? What the hell right do you have to say any of this shit. Get over yourself Jesse."

"Over myself?" he bites down so hard on his back teeth he thinks he feels a crack. "I like you Beca. You know that I like you," he challenges, and her eyes flicker away from his, suddenly uncomfortable. Of course she knew. "And if you don't like me too that's fine. I'm a big boy. I can handle it. But don't," and he swallows here, unable to keep looking at her without feeling that vulnerability in the pit of his stomach threatening to leave him raw. "Don't kiss me if you don't mean it, don't punish me when I didn't do anything wrong. Don't ignore me. It's not fair Beca. "

There's a pause, and Beca's mouth has parted, simply watching him with widened eyes.

The silence remains though, and when Beca's mouth snaps closed with a stubborn press of her lips, he makes his decision.

"I'll see you later," he says tiredly, turning away from her and making his way to the exit. She doesn't say anything, and she doesn't come after him either.

 

* * *

 

They don't speak for a while, nothing outside of perfunctory addresses when they're stuck working together at the radio station, and even then he starts to take less hours until he's there for two hours a week and the exact hours that she isn't.

He struggles not to share in her triumph when the Bellas do particularly well at one of the school's small performing arts nights, but claps anyway because no matter what the status of their relationship at the moment, he will always want her happy. He just chooses to turn and start a conversation with Donald when she walks by the Trebles, her eyes clearly seeking his out.

It sucks. It all feels so high school and juvenile, but he's hurt and feels like he has every right to be. She obviously feels her own sense of entitlement in this fun situation they've got themselves in because she makes no attempt to seek him out. Not even to tell him off one more time.

It sucks because he misses his friend. A lot.

It sucks because he can still feel the phantom press of her hand against his skin when she brushes past.

 

* * *

 

Two weeks later, he comes into his room to find a very awkward looking Benji just standing at the foot of his bed.

"Hi," Jesse draws out, confused as to why Benji looks like he's been waiting for him. "Honey I'm home?"

Benji let's out an uncomfortable laugh. "That's funny."

Jesse shrugs, and slings his backpack off his shoulder and onto his bed. "Wasn't that funny."

"I-let-Beca-into-the-room-and-she's-been-here-for-about-2-hours," leaves Benji all in one big exhale and it has Jesse freezing mid grab to shut the door behind him.

"Come again?" he asks, honestly getting none of that but  _Beca_.

"Hi," comes her voice from somewhere to his left, and Jesse actually stumbles back into the door in utter surprise.

"How the—" he points at her, looks to Benji, and then looks back to her. "Where were you  _hiding_?"

She just smiles at him, tight and slightly wavering, and it's the expression alone that reminds him that they haven't done this in a while; the whole friendship thing. He can admit that it aches a little to see her in his room.

"Benji can you give us a minute?" she says, but keeps her eyes on Jesse's wary brown ones. Benji fumbles with his cape and speeds towards the door.

"At your behest, my lady. My dude," he salutes Jesse, pausing only to leave Jesse with an encouraging smile, before he's out the door and shutting it behind him.

"Well, you have him wrapped around your little finger," Jesse jokes after a momentary silence, avoiding eye contact with her as he shucks his jacket off of his shoulders. He goes on like she isn't even there.

"Jesse," she says softly, "we need to talk."

"Ha," he barks involuntarily, "where have I heard that before."

Her mouth thins, and he can see her straighten her posture a bit from the corner of his eye. He takes a seat on his bed.

"Okay. I deserve that," she admits, and his brow furrows at her tone. He looks up slightly and watches her wring her hands in the way she does when she's uncomfortable or unsure, a weird little dance that she's never conscious of performing. All he can think of is how pretty her hair looks when it's braided like that.  _Fuuucccckkkkk._

"What do we need to talk about?" he decides to offer her a bone.

She scoffs, and his mouth quirks up a bit at the corners. Only a little bit. It's habit. Shut up.

"I want to apologize," she starts and swallows hard like it's difficult for her to admit. "The way I treated you...I was wrong. I'm sorry." When she finishes, she manages to drag her eyes up to his, meeting them like she needs to brace herself for whatever was coming next. It bothers him that she even thinks that way.

He's silent for a moment.

"That's it?" he says after a while, leaning down to untie his sneakers with a frustrated line to his brow. "Do you actually mean that, because it sounds like you're not sure  _why_  I'm pissed, and you just want this all to be over."

"Hence the apology," she bites back, an angry flush to her cheeks. "Jesse, I know I hurt you with the way that I treated you—"

"How," he interrupts, brown eyes pining her to the spot. "How exactly did you treat me Beca?"

It obviously takes her by surprise because he can see the strain on her face as her throat works furiously to swallow. "I took advantage of you," she says quietly, unable to look him in the eye. "I took advantage of your feelings for me."

It's weird to hear your crush admit, out loud, that you have feelings for them. I mean, of course Jesse knows this, but hearing it out in the open and from someone else's lips makes it all a lot more real than it's supposed to be. It's bizarre, and feels a lot like someone tore you out of your own body and hung you out in the open to dry. Vulnerability is not a good feeling.

Jesse sighs, rubbing at his eyes because that tension headache is making a spectacular return. "I was really hoping I was wrong about that one."

This makes Beca slightly angry.

"I'm trying to apologize here you jackass," she snaps, arms crossing over her chest in a defensive posture. "I was a bitch, I hurt you, I'm sorry. I want us to be friends again, I  _need_  us to just go back to being friends."

Jesse actually laughs at that one. "And why's that?"

" _Because I miss you_ ," she basically explodes, and Jesse's sarcastic smile falls right off of his face. "You're the closest thing to a real friend that I have in this shit hole. You're stupid, and annoying, and never shut up but when you aren't doing those things I just—" she stops, making frustrated gestures with her hands like she's not sure what to do with herself or how to express anything she's feeling right now. "I miss it. I miss you," she finishes, glaring at him with all the venom in the world. "You dick."

Jesse's mouth has fallen open, and he's not really sure what to say.

"I hated this place when I came here," she continues like a freight train, unconcerned by his lack of response. "I mean, I still hate it. But with the whole dumb Bellas thing, and you," she bites down really hard on her lips until they go bloodless from the pressure. "It makes me hate it a little bit less."

Well, holy shit.

"And I kissed you," she continues, but her words trail off and she goes completely pale under the crappy fluorescent lighting. She tears her gaze from his, and he hears her curse under her breath.

"You kissed me," he encourages, stunned and still sitting on his bed like a total dope. He knows not to push her, hell, in his wildest dreams he never would have gotten any of this coming out of that sarcastic little mouth of hers.

She's waging an inner war with herself, he can tell by the way her grip on her forearms tightens until he can see her finger marks on the white skin there.

"I kissed you because I wanted to get those feelings out of the way, so that we could just continue being friends."

There is absolute silence in the room. And then-

"That makes no sense," he says.

Beca shoots him an irritated look, before looking away again.

"You thought that you would kiss  _me_ , "he points to himself, "to get my feelings for  _you_ ," points to her," out of  _my_ system. Question, were you particularly good at math as a kid? I'm thinking the answer is no."

Beca rolls her eyes skyward, but in a move he couldn't predict, bends down to take a seat next to him on his bed.

"Well obviously it backfired spectacularly in my face," she quips, heaving a sigh as she makes herself more comfortable on his bedspread. "It was a really stupid idea."

"It really was," he answers solemnly, and he chuckles a bit when she reaches over to pinch him in the side. They're silent for a moment, just sitting there on his bed, neither really looking at the other.

"I'm really sorry Jesse," she says firmly, and when he glances over to see her looking up at him, he can't help but feel the tension slip from his shoulders. He can't forget, won't forget what had happened, and he's not sure that things can go back to the way they were. She knows this, he thinks, he can tell by the almost desperate quality in her expression as she looks at him. Desperate is not a state of Beca Mitchell's being, and that sinks him a little bit. However, it was hard to stay mad at this girl, especially when the reason for his anger was all due to the fact that he cared so much about her that it physically hurt to look at her sometimes.

"I know," he answers, smile a bit sad. "I'm sorry too. I said some things that I shouldn't have."

"No," she objects, turning away as she shakes her head. A few strands of her hair fall out of her braid, and he finds himself tracing their downward trajectory against the soft planes of her cheeks. "You were right, I-" she stops and chews distractedly on her lip. "I have problems letting people in. It's easier to just...push them away."

His brow puckers at her admission, but she clears her throat, pointedly keeping her eyes away from him. He gets the message that there will be no follow-up questions to such an admission.

He shifts, and his pant leg brushes against the fabric of her jeans.

"So," she says again, slightly wry, but tentative when she swings her gaze back up to him. "We good?"

"Goodfellas," Jesse assures her, and grins when her nose wrinkles adorably in confusion. "Minus the whole murdering and drug dealing. Although, I have a suspicion that I would make an excellent Italian gangster."

"What," she says dryly, "because you're so Italian and all."

"I like pizza okay," Jesse objects defensively, relishing in the ease in which they slide back into their most comfortable status quo: banter. "What more do you want, a dead horse head in the bed?"

She snickers, the corner of her lip tilting up. "Another movie reference?"

This time he really gapes at her in horror. "What no, come on. The Godfather? You don't even know  _The Godfather_. You know what Beca," he slaps his hands on his knees and gets up from the bed, totally offended. "This whole friendship thing really isn't going to work out. I think you should leave and ponder your shortcomings."

He expects her to roll her eyes, maybe smile a bit secretively, but all he gets is a pensive look on her face. There's a weird silence for a few moments where she just watches him, and the longer she does it, the more he can feel his smile slip.

"I'll do that," she says finally, getting up off the bed with a familiar smirk. His relaxes as he watches her retrieve her bag, those tendrils of escaped hair still brushing against her cheek. "I should probably go before you start doing your De Niro impression anyways. It's painful to watch."

"Hey," Jesse protests, hands extended and shoulders hunched up. "You talkin' to me?"

"Ah," Beca sighs, shouldering her bag, "and there it is."

"You  _talkin' to me?_  " Jesse continues, breaking when she reaches up to slap him lightly on the face. He's laughing when she clutches his jaw in her fingers and brings his face down to her level.

"I  _am_  talking to you, and I'm telling you not to quit your day job."

Jesse's not really sure what to say to that, not when his face is so close to her own. Her eyes are weird, mocking like they usually are with him, but there's something light there, something that he can't quite name.

"Can I keep it as a part-time job?" he questions, words slurring because she's got such a tight grip on his chin and it's mushing his lips together like a fish.

"I have to get to Bellas practice," she rolls her eyes, releasing him without so much of an apology for leaving finger indents on his jaw. "I'll see you later?" she asks, her voice slightly higher, maybe a bit hesitant as she pins him with those eyes.

"Yeah," he assures her, rubbing the back of his neck. "Later."

She smiles brilliantly at him for a moment, and it makes his breath catch a little in his chest. Oh right, those feelings that were causing so big of a problem between them. How silly of him to forget that  _they were still there._  He sighs a little when the door shuts behind her, and she's gone from his room.

They had made huge progress today, and it felt really fucking good to be able to call her a friend again. Of course, there was that whole fact that his feelings were out in the open and totally acknowledged, and a bit dismissed but hey...you can only ask for so much right?

"My De Niro impression is amazing," he mutters defensively as he lets his body fall onto his bed. It would be cliché to think that the raw feeling that is so nervously clutching at his insides feels lighter somehow, hopeful, but Jesse thinks it anyway. "What would she know," he continues, words slightly muffled by the fact that his face is essentially smothered by his comforter. "She's never seen a whole movie in her life."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Movie References:
> 
> \- Goodfellas (1990) dir., Martin Scorsese
> 
> \- The Godfather (1972) dir., Francis Ford Coppola
> 
> \- Taxi Driver (1976) dir., Martin Scorsese


End file.
